Wednesday, June 28, 2017

What's next at the national level with health care reform?

The Senate Republicans introduced Better Care Reconciliation Act (BCRA) last Thursday! Learn more:

 Colorado Health Institute - Questions and Answers About the Better Care Reconciliation Act

The latest from the Colorado Health Policy Coalition:

"If anyone tells you they know what is going to happen next in the federal health care debate, don’t believe them. By now you all know that Senate Republicans made the decision yesterday afternoon to delay a vote on their proposal until after the July 4th Holiday. Lacking the votes to pass their proposal and the time to negotiate amendments ahead of the break, Republican leadership opted to forego their planned vote this week in favor of trying to garner necessary support to pass the measure in July. Here are links to a few stories on where we stand in the process.
  • Senate GOP yanks Obamacare repeal bill, Politico, June 27 
  • Short on Backers, GOP delays vote on health bill, Wall Street Journal (subscription required), June 27 
  • Trump, Senate leaders attempt to regroup after postponing vote to overhaul Obamacare, Washington Post, June 27 
Also yesterday:
· Leading Colorado health care providers gathered at the State Capitol to express their concerns about the Senate process and proposal and released polling data re: Colorado opinions on the federal health debate.
· Colorado’s Governor John Hickenlooper played a leading role among a bi-partisan group of Governors calling for a re-write of the Senate bill. Their event in Washington DC yesterday garnered a lot of attention. It will be interesting to see what role Governors could play in helping to craft the next iteration of federal legislation. For more speculation on the role of Governors in this debate, check out this article from The Hill.

This saga is far from over. We’ll keep you updated with new information as we get it."

The latest from the Protect our Care Colorado Campaign:
"Vote postponed—more time to act!
The Senate vote has been postponed until after the July 4th recess.
Your actions to oppose this legislation are working, giving us more time to weigh in.
Today, Senator McConnell postponed the vote on the Senate version of the health care legislation until after the weeklong July 4th recess. Yesterday, the nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office revealed what we all know—that the Senate repeal and replace effort will be very bad for Colorado. Twenty-two million Americans stand to lose coverage under the Senate version of the bill.
The so-called Better Care Reconciliation Act (Senate version of the AHCA):
  • Repeals support for out of pocket expenses for low and moderate income families;
  • Decreases the value of the health plans offered to people who purchase health insurance on their own, therefore, increasing out of pocket expenses;
  • Penalizes older people by allowing insurance companies to charge older people 5 times more than younger people and by increasing the amount seniors have to pay for their premiums to over 16% of their income; and
  • Makes deep cuts to Medicaid, threatening care for children, seniors and people with disabilities.  
Contact your Senators! 
Tell them to reject the Senate Healthcare Bill and protect Coloradans with pre-exisitng conditions! 
Senator Gardner
Denver: (303) 391-5777
Senator Bennet 
Denver: (303) 455-7600
Don't worry—here are couple draft emails for you if you're stuck! 
Draft #1
Dear ____,
My name is ____ and I live in ____, Colorado. I am emailing to urge you to oppose the repeal of the ACA and the proposed Republican Plan. The bill would result in 22 million people losing their insurance, and make coverage less accessible and more costly. Real lives are at stake, and the replacement plan is irresponsible and harmful.
Best,
(Your name here)
Draft #2
Dear ____,
My name is ____ and I live in ____, Colorado.  I am emailing to urge you to not support the Republican Healthcare bill. (Insert personal healthcare story here). Congress must ensure Coloradans like me don't lose healht insurance, experience higher costs, or have their plans cancelled. 
Sincerely, 
(Your name here)
Join us on social media! 
  • Use social media to tell our Senators to reject repeal and protect health care for Coloradans! Tag@SenCoryGardner and @SenBennetCO
  • Sample Tweets: 
    • .@SenCoryGardner Vote no on #BCRA. We can't afford higher costs & cuts in coverage just to give the rich another tax break. #ProtectOurCare
    • .@SenBennetCO The #ACA has helped 600K Coloradans get health insurance, thanks for your work to #RejectRepeal #ProtectOurCare
  • Use this sample graphic: 
Attend an event! 
Take a deeper dive! 
  • This week there is a national focus on substance use disorders (SUDs) and the impact that cuts to Medicaid could have  on the ability to help treat SUDs like opiod addiction. Community Catalyst is hosting aTwitter chat this week to discuss: 
  • Here's some sample social media posts to use:
    • #Medicaid cuts will not be tolerated. Treatment saves lives. #ProtectSUDServices
    • Don’t turn back the clock on my #essentialhealthbenefits #ProtectOurCare #ProtectSUDServices
    • Emergency opioid response funding is no replacement for reliable health care coverage #ProtectSUDServices
  • Here are a few SUD resources:
    • Colorado Health Institute paper demonstrating the extent of the opioid crisis in Colorado.
    • New op-ed from Mental Health Colorado's Andrew Romanoff"
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