PROTECT OUR CARE ** WEEKLY WRAP-UP ** [ January 30 - February 3, 2017 ] Deeply Divided GOP Continues to Move Target for ACA Repeal The GOP goalposts keep moving for when they expect to take away health coverage from 30 million people by repealing the ACA, signaling continued division anxiety within the party around the best path forward. Plans to repeal the ACA were once viewed as inevitable and seemingly unstoppable, but due to mounting public pressure the GOP timeline has stalled, and is slipping even further back. At his weekly press briefing yesterday, House Speaker Paul Ryan said that Congress would move on repealing Obamacare before the end of the first quarter of 2017. Paul Ryan: The timeline, yeah. So I'll defer to the chairman when he wants to have his markup. But we want - we want to move our Obamacare legislation by the end of the first quarter. With a new Quinnipiac University poll showing that 84% of Americans oppose ACA repeal without a replacement, Republicans are right to be concerned. Reports out this week illustrate the anxiety brewing in the party, as GOP members realize the storm of opposition brewing at their doorsteps: Gov. Paul LePage (R-ME): Taking your hypothetical," LePage said, "I'm not sure you're going to have anyone in Washington with the courage to repeal the ACA. I do not believe for a minute that now that we have exchanges they will take them away. Rep. Tom McClintock (R-CA): We d better be sure that we re prepared to live with the market we ve created [with repeal]...that s going to be called Trumpcare. Republicans will own that lock, stock and barrel, and we ll be judged in the election less than two years away. Rep. Tom MacArthur (R-NJ): We re telling those people that we re not going to pull the rug out from under them, and if we do this too fast, we are in fact going to pull the rug out from under them. Coverage Highlights: G.O.P. Campaign to Repeal Obamacare Stalls on the Details New York Times // February 3 Slow Pace of Obamacare Repeal Leaves House Conservatives Fuming Bloomberg // January 31 This Week s Local Coverage Highlights: How Could Changes Or Repeal Of ACA Affect Arizona Economy? KJZZ // January 31 Affordable Care Act Repeal Could Put Tribal Healthcare at Risk KNAU - Arizona Public Radio // January 31 Memphis woman shares story of getting insurance through Affordable Care Act Memphis News Channel 3 // February 2 People concerned about end of Obamacare gather outside senators' Nashville offices Nashville News Channel 17 // January 27 Affordable Care Act: A look at how Obamacare has helped or hurt Nevada residents KLAS-TV Las Vegas // February 1 Maine Health Providers Join to Urge Collins Not to Repeal ACA MainePublic.org // February 2 Op-Ed: An open letter to Sen. Susan Collins Courier-Gazette & Camden Herald // February 2
The arts community braces for the potential fallout from the hotly debated Obamacare rollback Columbus Alive // Erica Thompson // February 2 Op-Ed:Repeal of Obamacare is a Serious Threat Pennsylvania Intelligencer // February 2 Why some Maine farmers don t want Obamacare repealed Bangor Daily News // January 31 Obamacare repeal uncertainties worry central Ohio hospitals Columbus Dispatch // January 30 Obamacare repeal through the eyes of St. Louis area residents STLtoday.com // January 31 Republicans on the Run: Under Pressure, GOP Dodge Constituent Concerns Along with trying to hide the fact that they re trying to rip away health care from 30 million people with new focus-grouped word changes, the political fallout from repealing the ACA is getting to be such a disaster for Republicans that they re now hiding from their own constituents. People are scared about what will happen to their health care if Republicans blow up our health care system - and Republicans can t hide from the reality that they simply have no plan. Watch VIDEO of Rep. Brat joking about hiding from his constituents: Rep. Mike Coffman (R-CO) used crime scene tape to sneak out of a town meeting when he saw more people showed up than he expected. Afterward, he said, "Yesterday was unfortunate because partisan activists showed up only to disrupt the event I was holding at Aurora Central Library. I have been doing five minute oneon-one constituent meetings for the last five years although I do allow small groups, if they share the same issue concerns. This gives an opportunity for everyone to be heard and not just the loudest voices in the room. Sen. Lamar Alexander (R-TN) s office was flooded with people urging him not to repeal Obamacare without a replacement. None of us walk into the hospital as a Republican or a Democrat, Kristen Grimm, whose son has had 19 surgeries because of a condition he was born with, told Alexander, the Spring Hill Home Page reported. We all enter as human beings seeking mercy and quality health care. Christine Griffiths, a breast cancer survivor, said if the law were repealed without a replacement she would have no other option than to just not treat myself. And I will die. Sen. Cory Gardner (R-CO) disconnected his phones lines and his constituents are blocked from leaving messages asking him to save the ACA. Sen. James Lankford (R-OK) said his office is being flooded with calls about people worried about losing their coverage. Coverage highlights:
Rep. Roskam's office cancels Obamacare meeting Chicago Tribune // February 2 Comstock a no-show at weekend town halls POLITICO // February 1 Rep. Dave Brat says Since Obamacare and these issues have come up, the women are in my grill no matter where I go Richmond Times-Dispatch // January 30 Save My Care Takes the Hill - Day of Action to Confront Senators As frustration and anxiety among working people grows over the fate of their healthcare, more than 100 doctors, nurses, healthcare workers, home care and child care providers, faith leaders, and concerned citizens took their questions directly to Republican senators on Tuesday. The group challenged Senators Toomey (R-PA.), Blunt (R-MO.), Daines (R-MT), and Heller (R-NV.) to meet with them in their offices and explain their plan for replacing the ACA. None of the senators was available to answer their constituents questions. The protests culminated in a final show of civil disobedience outside Sen. Orrin Hatch's (R-UT) office, where protesters blocked the hallway demanding to hear how the Senate Finance Committee chair plans to keep American families covered. Chanting "What's the plan for healthcare? What's the plan for us?" nearly 50 protesters were arrested and escorted out of the building. Coverage highlights: Why did this great-grandma from Missouri get arrested on Capitol Hill? McClatchy DC // January 31, 2017 Obamacare s Unlikely Defenders The Atlantic // February 3, 2017
On last day of ACA enrollment, protesters demand Senators keep legislation The Washington Post // February 1, 2017 5PM News WCAU-NBC // January 31, 2017 In Case You Missed It Little for Most Workers, Tax Shelters for the Top -- CBPP released a report this week showing that the bill from Senators Cassidy and Collins would do very little to help low- and moderate-income people afford decentquality health coverage - while greatly expanding tax-sheltering opportunities for high-income people. AARP sent letters criticizing two proposals - age bands and block grants - that are often touted in GOP discussions about replacing the Affordable Care Act. According to The Huffington Post: The AARP s objections alone aren t enough to stop Republicans from including versions of these ideas in health care legislation, of course. But the organization represents a demographic that happens to be an essential part of the Republican voting coalition. Taken together, the group s warnings constitute one more reminder of the difficult policy trade-offs, and equally difficult politics, that Republicans are sure to confront as their effort to repeal Obamacare moves forward. Report from the Road: Save My Care Bus Tour Update: Since launching the Save My Care Bus Tour two weeks ago, events have been held in communities and towns across New York, Maine, Pennsylvania, Kentucky, West Virginia, Ohio, Indiana, Illinois and Wisconsin. The bus tour team has talked to small business owners who will have to close their doors if the ACA is repealed, families who rely on the ACA s protections for people with pre-existing conditions, and doctors worried that the Congressional GOP s repeal plans will force them to lay off half of their staff. And they re far from finished. The Bus will remain on the road for 6 more weeks - and will continue to tell the stories of the 30 million Americans who will lose their health coverage if the Affordable Care Act is repealed. Learn more by visiting www.savemycare.org - or follow the bus on Twitter and Instagram at @SaveMyCare.
Coverage Highlights: Preview & Launch Stories: Washington Post, New York Times, NBC News, Fox DC NYC: Fox NYC, El Diario, Univision Maine: CBS Portland, CBS Bangor, NBC Bangor New York State: Albany Times Union, ABC Albany, NBC Albany, TWC Albany, North East Public Radio, CBS Binghamton, ABC Binghamton, Press & Sun Bulletin, Binghamton Homepage Pennsylvania: CBS Harrisburg, ABC Harrisburg, Fox Harrisburg, NBC Wilkes Barre, NBC Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh Cable News, Pittsburgh News Radio, Central Penn Business Journal, Pittsburgh CW, NBC Wilkes- Barre, ABC Scranton, Allentown Morning Call, Allentown TV News, Washington Post, CNN, Kaiser Health News, The Hill, Gray TV, Philadelphia Inquirer, Philly Voice,Philadelphia Intelligencer, Philadelphia Inquirer, CBS Philadelphia, ABC Philadelphia, NPR Philadelphia, Allentown Morning Call Kentucky: Louisville Courier-Journal, Louisville Courier-Journal, NBC Louisville, ABC Louisville, Fox Louisville, Lexington Herald Leader, KY Forward, CBS Lexington, Lexington Gray Affiliate, Fox Lexington, NBC Lexington, ABC Lexington West Virginia: Register-Herald, ABC Charleston, NBC Charleston Ohio: CBS Dayton, Fox Dayton, ABC Dayton, Dayton Public Radio, Dayton Daily News Illinois: NBC Chicago; Chicago TV News; ABC Chicago Wisconsin: Fox La Crosse; NBC La Crosse; CBS La Crosse; La Crosse News Talk *** To sign up for Protect Our Care email updates, please fill out this form. ***