LET'S GET TO WORK: Civic action to-do list for 6-26-17
All hands on deck for health care!
This week the Senate will hold a vote on their disastrous healthcare bill, The Better Care Reconciliation Act. This legislation strips healthcare from millions of Americans while giving tax cuts to wealthiest families in our country. We can’t stand idly by while these Senators defund Planned Parenthood, allow insurance companies to charge more for maternity coverage, and snatch Medicaid coverage from millions of people!
The Medicaid cuts under this legislation are staggering: Not only will approximately 20 million people be kicked out of Medicaid (left with no other options for affordable healthcare), it will also limit the amount of money spent per person. With Medicaid paying for nearly two-thirds of nursing home patients, the elderly will be left with no way to pay for the care they need late in life.
The Better Care Reconciliation Act will prevent Planned Parenthood clinics nationwide from reimbursing services through Medicaid for a full calendar year. Those clinics that will not be forced to close their doors will have to to turn away women who use Medicaid as their primary insurer. Millions will lose access to the critical, integral care Planned Parenthood provides.
Mitch McConnell’s healthcare bill will also do away with the Obamacare protection that requires every insurance policy to cover 10 essential health benefits, including maternity care, substance abuse, and mental health care. If this legislation becomes law, women could have to pay $1,000 extra just to keep their maternity and pregnancy care coverage!