[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 163 (2017), Part 7]
[Senate]
[Pages 8859-8860]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                         HEALTHCARE LEGISLATION

  Mr. McCONNELL. On another matter, Mr. President, just this week, 
Ohioans learned that a major insurer will exit their State's ObamaCare 
exchanges next year, leaving thousands in at least 18 counties without 
a single option--not one; not a single option--in the marketplace. The 
State's insurance department cites ObamaCare as the reason behind this 
troubling news, saying:

       Before the Affordable Care Act (ACA) Ohio had a very 
     competitive health insurance market. [But] new regulations 
     from [the] ACA have driven some companies out of Ohio and 
     made it harder for them to do business, both of which have 
     driven up the cost of health insurance in Ohio.

  Forcing insurance options out of the marketplace, making it harder 
for people to find coverage, driving up costs of health insurance--
these are the results

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of ObamaCare in Ohio and across the country, and the pain is all too 
real for thousands of Americans like those the President visited with 
just yesterday.
  As he addressed a crowd in Cincinnati, the President shared the story 
of a small business owner from Louisville--my hometown--who, as the 
President said, is just one of the ``many victims of the ObamaCare 
catastrophe'' forced on the American people. Before ObamaCare, this 
Kentuckian's employees had access to multiple options for high-quality, 
affordable healthcare. Now, under the failed healthcare law, these 
workers face premiums that are 150 percent higher, while having fewer 
choices. To make matters worse, health insurance under ObamaCare has 
become so unaffordable that he now has difficulty creating new jobs 
that would employ even more Kentuckians.
  This Louisville man is not alone either. Just a couple of days ago, 
Dr. Tom Price, the Secretary of Health and Human Services, met with 
small business owners who have faced similar challenges because of 
ObamaCare, people like one Kentuckian from Richmond. Here is what this 
Kentuckian and founder of a CPA firm said of her experience with the 
failed healthcare law:

       Of all the clients that we see, there's not one good story 
     about ObamaCare. And it's mostly without exception, horror 
     stories of what has happened to themselves and their own 
     employees.

  She, like so many others, knows that the so-called Affordable Care 
Act has really been anything but affordable for too many small business 
owners and their employees.
  These Kentuckians' stories provide just a glimpse into the disastrous 
impacts ObamaCare has had on Americans across the country. Although 
some may try to paint a different picture now, ObamaCare is responsible 
for the failures and the hurt it has created--not the American people, 
not those of us trying to help rescue families from this ill-advised 
law.
  Since ObamaCare was fully enacted in 2013, premiums have increased by 
an average of 105 percent and millions of Americans have lost their 
plans. This year, people in just under three-quarters of counties 
nationally have only one or two choices on the ObamaCare exchanges, and 
the situation is likely to only get worse next year. That is why Senate 
Republicans believe we must act. That is why we are working to keep our 
commitment to the American people and finally provide relief from 
ObamaCare. This law has failed the American people, and the status quo 
is clearly unsustainable.
  As Senate Republicans continue our conversations on a path forward, I 
hope our Democratic colleagues will finally put aside their last-ditch 
efforts to salvage this failing law that is hurting so many people in 
the States they represent. It is time to face reality, no matter how 
inconvenient it may be, and help those who are counting on relief from 
ObamaCare.
  I suggest the absence of a quorum.
  The ACTING PRESIDENT pro tempore. The clerk will call the roll.
  The legislative clerk proceeded to call the roll.
  Mr. SCHUMER. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the order 
for the quorum call be rescinded.
  The ACTING PRESIDENT pro tempore. Without objection, it is so 
ordered.

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