[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 163 (2017), Part 1]
[Senate]
[Page 1125]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                   REPEALING THE AFFORDABLE CARE ACT

  Mr. WHITEHOUSE. Mr. President, Republicans in Congress have been on 
the warpath for a long time to repeal the Affordable Care Act. In fact, 
in this new Congress, their first order of business has been to pave 
the way for dismantling this law. Despite the fact that 20 million 
Americans have gained health insurance coverage thanks to this law, 
despite people no longer being denied coverage for preexisting 
conditions, despite big savings in health care costs, and despite 
everyone with insurance being able to access important preventive 
health services for free, my Republican colleagues have decided to 
repeal it. And, after 7 years to get ready, they have no replacement, 
not even a path to a replacement at this point.
  Yes, they are set on repealing a law that has provided both health 
and financial security to millions of Americans, with no replacement in 
sight, just at this point some empty IOU for some future piece of 
legislation that may or may not be any good. It is a little like being 
asked to jump out of an airplane without a parachute and being told: 
Trust us. We will build the parachute for you before you hit the 
ground.
  We don't know what this nonexistent Republican replacement would look 
like, but we sure do know what a repeal would do; it would gut health 
insurance premium tax credits that help millions of Americans obtain 
health insurance they could not otherwise afford. It would unwind an 
expansion of the Medicaid Program that covers millions more Americans 
in some 30 States that have chosen to participate, casting tens of 
millions of Americans--men, women, and children--out of their health 
insurance.
  At the same time, it would deliver an enormous tax boon to 
millionaires and billionaires, as usual for Republicans, by repealing 
the revenue we used to pay for ObamaCare. This tax boon is a 16-percent 
reduction in the taxes owed by millionaires and billionaires on their 
investment income.
  Republicans want to take health insurance away from tens of millions 
of ordinary Americans and simultaneously reward those at the very top 
of the income pile with a big tax benefit. So much for all the talk we 
have heard from Republicans about the deficit.
  At least in Rhode Island, the Affordable Care Act is working. The law 
launched accountable care organizations that are improving care while 
lowering costs. In Rhode Island, Coastal Medical and Integra Community 
Care Network--two primary care-focused ACOs--are not only driving down 
per person health expenditures but achieving high marks on quality and 
on patient experience. In total, Coastal has saved $24 million over 3 
years and Integra has saved $4 million in its first year as an ACO.
  The Affordable Care Act also has protected seniors from the dreaded 
drug price doughnut hole, and I can tell you I heard a lot about the 
doughnut hole from seniors in Rhode Island when I was running for the 
Senate. The Affordable Care Act has protected families where someone 
had a chronic condition and couldn't get insurance, and the Affordable 
Care Act has prevented insurers from throwing customers off coverage 
when they get sick.
  It is true that some of the health insurance exchanges haven't 
attracted enough competition. We can fix that. Indeed, to help with 
that issue, Senators Brown, Franken, and I are today introducing the 
Consumer Health Options and Insurance Competition Enhancement Act, or 
the CHOICE Act, to add a public health insurance option to the health 
insurance exchanges. This public option would guarantee that consumers 
always have an affordable, high-quality option when shopping for health 
insurance and a strong health care fallback when markets fail.
  ObamaCare may not be perfect, but it has done an awful lot of good. 
Millions of Americans who lacked insurance now have it, and the rate of 
uninsured Americans has fallen to 8.6 percent, about half of what it 
was in 2010. Projected Federal health care costs are down nearly $3 
trillion.
  Instead of demolishing a system that works well for millions of 
Americans with no replacement on the horizon, let's use our proposal to 
make it better. Let's add a public option to our health insurance 
exchanges.
  Mr. WHITEHOUSE. Mr. President, if I could address another topic now 
and ask unanimous consent to speak for up to 15 minutes in morning 
business.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered.

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