Election returns yesterday resulted in substantial losses for Democrats at the congressional and gubernatorial levels. The following is the statement of Ron Pollack, Executive Director of the consumer health organization Families USA, concerning voter sentiments about Republican Party leaders’ pledges to repeal the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act:
“American voters’ focus during the elections was overwhelmingly on jobs and the economy, and this will remain the key public concern until the economy substantially improves. As pre-election polls reflect, calls to repeal the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act are not supported by America’s voters, and they certainly were not the motivating factor in the elections.
“Many independent polls have demonstrated that a majority of Americans either want to allow implementation of the new law to move forward or want to build on it to make further health reform improvements. Most voters do not want to repeal the new law and lose the many benefits they are already receiving or will receive.
Among the many improvements in the legislation that Americans favor and wish to protect are:
- Protections that prevent insurance companies from denying health coverage due to pre-existing conditions;
- Rules that stop insurance companies from charging discriminatory premiums to women;
- The opportunity for young adults (up to 26 years of age) to remain on their parents’ health coverage;
- Tax credits for small businesses so those business owners can afford to provide health coverage to their workers;
- Help for seniors needing multiple medicines so they no longer fall into the huge and growing drug coverage gap called the 'doughnut hole’;
- New opportunities for seniors and people with disabilities to receive care in their homes and communities rather than in nursing homes;
- State oversight of insurance companies so insurers don’t unreasonably increase premiums or spend large portions of premium dollars on overhead and profits;
- Tax credit subsidies for middle-class families to make insurance premiums affordable;
- Rules that allow patients to challenge claims denials by insurance companies;
- The provision of preventive care screenings without deductibles and copayments; and
- Protections against family bankruptcies by eliminating annual and lifetime caps in health insurance policies.
“All of these provisions will help many millions of Americans. As a result, officeholders seeking to repeal the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act would cause great harm, and they would do so at their own political peril.
“Incredibly, even though repeal proponents persistently criticized health reform while supporters often focused on economic and local issues, most voters still oppose repeal. This augurs well for the future of the new law as more and more people directly benefit from its provisions.
“Now that the contentious elections are over, it is time for policy makers to work cooperatively to ensure that health reform is implemented as helpfully and effectively as possible. If that happens, America’s families will secure the peace of mind associated with access to high-quality, affordable health coverage and care.”
