Offering asides, recommended links, blogworthy quotations, and more, In Brief is the Northwest Progressive Institute's microblog of world, national, and local politics.
I talked with the marketing director of the small hospital in Greenville, Maine, yesterday at lunch… She told me that the hospital is the biggest employer in town, with 180 employees, and that it relies on Medicaid for 65 percent of its revenues. It is unlikely that this community hospital could survive the cuts that are in the Senate bill.
— Republican Senator Susan Collins of Maine (The New York Times: Republican support of Senate health repeal erodes during break)
The score is in, and as expected, it’s ugly:
The Senate bill to repeal the [Patient Protection and] Affordable Care Act would increase the number of people without health insurance by 22 million by 2026, a figure that is only slightly lower than the 23 million more uninsured that the House version would create, the nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office said Monday.
Next year, 15 million more people would be uninsured compared with current law, the budget office said.
An earlier House version of Trumpcare was scored by the CBO as likely to result in 24 million Americans becoming uninsured. This Senate version is barely less awful.
A summary of the score has been published on the CBO’s website.
CBO and JCT estimate that, in 2018, 15 million more people would be uninsured under this legislation than under current law—primarily because the penalty for not having insurance would be eliminated. The increase in the number of uninsured people relative to the number projected under current law would reach 19 million in 2020 and 22 million in 2026. In later years, other changes in the legislation—lower spending on Medicaid and substantially smaller average subsidies for coverage in the nongroup market—would also lead to increases in the number of people without health insurance. By 2026, among people under age 65, enrollment in Medicaid would fall by about 16 percent and an estimated 49 million people would be uninsured, compared with 28 million who would lack insurance that year under current law.
Gutting Medicaid and ripping apart the provisions of the Patient Protection Act will harm tens of millions of people and result in at least thousands of deaths. That’s immoral and unethical. This is evil legislation, and it absolutely must be defeated.
I have to start off by, I guess first congratulating all of the millionaires on the incredible gift that they are about to get. I always wondered what you get for the person who has everything, and now I know, it’s cutting benefits to young children, poor families, the infirm, the elderly.
— Dr. Ben Danielson, senior medical director at Odessa Brown Children’s Clinic in Seattle (The Seattle Times: Senator Maria Cantwell vows to use ‘every tool we have’ to stop GOP health-care plan)
“Jimmy returns from his time off after his newborn son Billy had heart surgery and he talks about the outpouring of love and support he has received, the not-so-nice things some people have said, and he speaks with Louisiana’s Republican Senator Bill Cassidy about the health care debate.”
Oh, gosh. Let’s put it this way: People in my office have read all parts of the bill. I don’t think any individual has read the whole bill. That’s why we have staff.
— Representative Thomas Garrett of Virginia, speaking to MSNBC: “I don’t think any individual has read” Trumpcare bill
His vote apparently not needed for the legislation’s passage, Congressman Dave Reichert (WA-08) announced this morning that he will be opposing the newest incarnation of Trumpcare when it comes up for a vote within the next few hours.
“Unfortunately, the current House bill falls short and does not provide the essential protections I need to support it,” Reichert said in a statement sent to news outlets but curiously not yet published on his own official website or social media channels.
“With all of the political banter surrounding this bill, it can be difficult to remember that this decision ultimately comes down to people. We need to know our loved ones can get and afford the care they need, regardless of age, income, or health status,” Reichert’s statement added.
Reichert has been deluged by calls, emails, and faxes insisting that he oppose the legislation, which would be catastrophic for American families.
Fellow Republican Jaime Herrera-Beutler is also a no on the bill. Republicans Dan Newhouse and Cathy McMorris Rodgers are expected to vote yes.
“House Republicans are finally within striking distance on their [scheme to gut] health care bill, flipping at least two members through a small amendment and shoring up support among some undecided members through good old-fashioned whipping,” reports The Huffington Post’s .
Two key Republicans in the no camp (Fred Upton and Billy Long) have changed their minds after Trump, Pence, and Ryan came down on them like a load of bricks.
There are still a number of Republicans who are opposed, and the bill’s prospects are dicey, but it could pass with enough arm-twisting.
Now is the time to call your members of Congress, especially if any are Republicans, and tell them you’re fiercely opposed to this disastrous legislation that would sabotage the healthcare of millions of Americans. Insist that they vote no.
Dave Reichert is now said to be in the “lean yes” camp, which is appalling. Reichert needs to hear from as many constituents as possible.
Alaska’s Don Young, meanwhile, is still “undecided”.
Here is the current HuffPost whip count on the latest version of the GOP health care proposal. This whip count is based on conversations with lawmakers and staffers with knowledge of how members are voting. Not every lawmaker on this list has confirmed how he or she will vote ― this is our best guess:
No (16)
Mark Amodei (Nev.)
Andy Biggs (Ariz.)
Barbara Comstock (Va.)
Ryan Costello (Pa.)
Charlie Dent (Pa.)
Dan Donovan (N.Y.)
Brian Fitzpatrick (Pa.)
Jaime Herrera Beutler (Wash.)
Walter Jones (N.C.)
John Katko (N.Y.)
Leonard Lance (N.J.)
Frank LoBiondo (N.J.)
Thomas Massie (Ky.)
Patrick Meehan (Pa.)
Ileana Ros-Lehtinen (Fla.)
Chris Smith (N.J.)Lean No (8)
Paul Cook (Calif.)
Jeff Denham (Calif.)
Mario Diaz-Balart (Fla.)
David Joyce (Ohio)
Michael Turner (Ohio)
David Valadao (Calif.)
Daniel Webster (Fla.)
David Young (Iowa)Undecided (13)
Justin Amash (Mich.)
Carlos Curbelo (Fla.)
John Faso (N.Y.)
Darrell Issa (Calif.)
Steve Knight (Calif.)
Erik Paulsen (Minn.)
Bruce Poliquin (Maine)
Peter Roskam (Ill.)
Ed Royce (Calif.)
Elise Stefanik (N.Y.)
Rob Wittman (Va.)
Kevin Yoder (Kan.)
Don Young (Alaska)Lean Yes (17)
Rod Blum (Iowa)
Ted Budd (N.C.)
Bradley Byrne (Ala.)
Mike Coffman (Colo.)
Rick Crawford (Ark.)
Tom Emmer (Minn.)
Jeff Fortenberry (Neb.)
Rodney Frelinghuysen (N.J.)
Garret Graves (La.)
Peter King (N.Y.)
Adam Kinzinger (Ill.)
David McKinley (W.V.)
Dave Reichert (Wash.)
Hal Rogers (Ky.)
Scott Tipton (Colo.)
Glenn Thompson (Pa.)
Lee Zeldin (N.Y.)
This is a monologue worth watching.
“Jimmy and his wife Molly welcomed their second child together, William ‘Billy’ Kimmel. At three days old, Billy had successful open heart surgery at Children’s Hospital Los Angeles and is now home with his family. Jimmy opens up about his son’s birth and health complications and encourages donations to Children’s Hospital Los Angeles where Billy and so many other kids get such wonderful care.”
FOR MORE: Jimmy Kimmel’s humanity underscores heartlessness of Republican Party’s approach to the poor (The Huffington Post)
Donald Trump and Paul Ryan are trying once again to take away the healthcare of millions of Americans. For this attempt, they’ve struck a deal with the far-right wing “Freedom Caucus”, hoping to secure the votes of the most militant and extreme members of the House Republican Caucus. But that deal has come at a cost: squeamish, more reasonable Republicans are refusing to pledge their support.
Twenty Republicans are in the no camp so far including Jaime Herrera-Beutler (WA-03). If a few more join, the bill won’t have enough votes to pass.
Dave Reichert is once again (surprise, surprise) in the “undecided” camp.
Please call his office in D.C. at (202) 225-7761 and ask him to oppose this bill. If you can’t get through, call the Issaquah district offices at (425) 677-7414 or (877) 920-9208 or the Wenatchee office at (509) 885-6615.
Washington, DC Office
1127 Longworth HOB
Washington, DC 20515
Phone: (202) 225-7761
Fax: (202) 225-4282
Issaquah Office
22605 SE 56th Street Suite 130
Issaquah, WA 98029
Phone: (425) 677-7414 or (877) 920-9208
Fax: (425) 270-3589
Wenatchee Office
5 South Wenatchee Ave, Suite 315
Wenatchee, WA 98801
Phone: (509) 885-6615
Suzan DelBene lambastes Trumpcare in blistering House floor speech
TRANSCRIPT:
If Republicans crafted legislation that lived up to the promise of ‘insurance for everybody,’ they’d have broad bipartisan support.
But that’s not what they did. This bill threatens massive disruption and chaos — not only to our healthcare system, but to middle-class families.
Families who sit around their kitchen table trying to figure out how to pay their mortgage, buy groceries, and also get health coverage for their kids.
The Republican bill does nothing to help them.
In their rush to check a political box, Republicans have crafted legislation that does nothing but hurt working Americans.
And in the last 24 hours, it’s gone from bad to worse.
Make no mistake — the changes made in the 11th hour, to appease the most extreme members of Congress, put life-saving care even further out of reach.
Some may use “alternative facts,” but this is reality. And the reality is their bill jobs $75 billion from Medicare, forces older Americans to pay 5 times more than others and shifts $312 billion in out-of-pocket costs onto middle-class families.
But this is about more than numbers. It’s about people.
Like Rachel, from Kirkland, who suffered a heart attack and blood clot at the age of 35.
She now depends on frequent tests, medications and doctor visits to stay healthy. Thankfully, it’s all covered by her insurance.
Rachel told me, “I’m horrified by the talking point that equates repealing the Affordable Care Act with getting freedom back. For me, the loss of the ACA gives me nothing but the freedom to die sooner and worry more.”
I’m not voting against this bill because it’s a Republican bill. I’m voting ‘NO’ for families like Rachel’s.
Healthcare doesn’t need to be a partisan issue. I stand ready and willing to work on commonsense solutions that expand coverage and reduce costs.
But I was sent here to make my constituents’ lives better. this bill doesn’t do that and I encourage my colleagues to vote no.
A spokesperson for Dave Reichert has told The Seattle Times’ Jim Brunner he is not yet committed to voting for the Trumpcare bill being pushed by Paul Ryan:
Rep. Dave Reichert, R-Auburn, says he’s undecided on the proposed American Health Care Act (AHCA) — which he voted for in committee earlier this month.
Breanna Deutsch, a Reichert spokeswoman, said in an email the bill has changed since that committee vote.
“There are likely more changes to be made. Until we know what those changes are, Congressman Reichert is undecided,” she said.
Please call Dave Reichert’s office (1-202-225-7761) now and tell him to vote NO on the Trumpcare bill. Reichert needs to hear from as many of us as possible.
Courtesy of Governor Inslee and Insurance Commissioner Mike Kreidler, here are some essential points you can make in your message regarding the destructive impacts Trumpcare would have on Washington State:
You can contact Dave Reichert by calling his D.C. or in-district offices:
Washington, DC Office
1127 Longworth HOB
Washington, DC 20515
Phone: (202) 225-7761
Fax: (202) 225-4282
Issaquah Office
22605 SE 56th Street Suite 130
Issaquah, WA 98029
Phone: (425) 677-7414 or (877) 920-9208
Fax: (425) 270-3589
Wenatchee Office
5 South Wenatchee Ave, Suite 315
Wenatchee, WA 98801
Phone: (509)885-6615
Reichert’s website has a form that accepts email; be advised that only messages from constituents receive a response from Reichert’s staff.
U.S. Representatives Suzan DelBene and Pramila Jayapal have been forcefully speaking out against the House Republicans’ extremely destructive Trumpcare bill as it has speedily made its way through committee in the House of Representatives. These videos show them in action.
Jayapal on Republicans’ Massive Tax Cuts for the Rich
TRANSCRIPT:
Thank you, Mr. Higgins, for your leadership to prevent this unprecedented shift of wealth from working people to millionaires, billionaires and corporations.
Let us be clear that this Pay-More-For-Less bill is not a health care bill, it is a tax bill that gives $600 billion in tax cuts to the wealthiest, and is paid for on the backs of poor and middle-class households. In fact, the one basic principle that seems to be consistent in this bill is that the richer you are, the bigger your tax cut.
For instance, the top 4% of income earners who earn more than $300 million a year will get a total tax break of $275 million, or about $200,000 a year each.
Meanwhile, working families will see their benefits cut and their premiums rise.
Madam Chairman, this is America. We don’t begrudge people’s good fortune. But this bill is pure greed.
The rich get richer while 24 million people are stripped of health care. That is simply not right.
I yield back.
Suzan speaking in support of Jayapal’s motion on preserving Medicaid expansion
Oklahoma Republicans seek to kick 111,000 off Medicaid to save money
Cruel, cold-hearted Oklahoma House Republicans are seeking to deprive over a hundred thousand of their constituents access to Medicaid in order to close a budget shortfall.
New Louisiana Governor John Bel Edwards issues executive order to expand Medicaid
An additional 300,000 residents of Louisiana will soon have healthcare under Medicaid, thanks to an executive order signed by new Democratic Governor John Bel Edwards, who succeeded the deeply unpopular Republican Bobby Jindal on Monday.
Early detection of cervical cancer boosted by Patient Protection Act, researchers say
“Cancer researchers say there has been a substantial increase in women under the age of 26 who have received a diagnosis of early-stage cervical cancer, a pattern that they say is most likely an effect of the [Patient Protection] Act,” The New York Times reports.
People can’t rise if they can’t afford healthcare… They can’t rise if the minimum wage is too low to live on… They can’t rise if their governor makes it harder for them to get a college education.
— Hillary Clinton hits Jeb Bush first, and hard, in speech on race to the National Urban League (via The New York Times).
For no good reason, well known political news tabloid The Hill has chosen to cover the Supreme Court’s decision upholding the Patient Protection Act a second time by acting as a mouthpiece for congressional Republicans, Justice Antonin Scalia, and outside right wing groups, who are furious with the ruling.
The case, King v. Burwell, was decided in the Obama administration’s favor today on a 6-3 vote, with conservatives John Roberts and Anthony Kennedy siding with the court’s liberal wing in keeping the Patient Protection Act from being eviscerated.
Bitterly disappointed Republicans wasted no time in bashing the Court and aggressively peddling their false narrative about the law, enacted in 2010 by Democrats and signed by President Obama. They found a receptive audience in The Hill’s writing staff, who began churning out posts amplifying their reaction.
All of these posts were featured on The Hill’s front page today, and almost all of them use the Republican Party’s pejorative term for the PPA… “Obamacare”:
What about reaction from Democrats? Well, there were a couple stories… buried a ways down the page, below most of the stories featuring the Republican reaction.
And here’s the visual proof….
I feel like a pawn in a moneymaking game for hospital administrators. There are so many other ways I could have made my living and been more fulfilled. The sad part is we chose medicine because we thought it was worthwhile and noble, but from what I have seen in my short career, it is a charade.
— An unnamed doctor, writing on Sermo, an online community for physicians. (Via The Wall Street Journal: Why doctors are sick of their profession)
There are, I suppose, some people who are disappointed that Mr. Obama didn’t manage to make our politics less bitter and polarized. But that was never likely. The real question was whether he, with help from Nancy Pelosi and others, could make real progress on important issues. And the answer, I’m happy to say, is yes, he could.
— Paul Krugman: Yes he could (Healthcare & climate: President Obama’s big deals)
I think the prayer of the conservatives that this would collapse just didn’t get answered… It fills a need.
— Professor Uwe Reinhardt, a health economist at Princeton University, explaining to CNN why people are signing up for coverage under the Patient Protection Act despite right wing fearmongering over the law.
Watch Aasif Mandvi destroy Fox Business’ Todd Wilemon in this outstanding segment on the state of healthcare in America (and specifically, Knoxville, Tennessee)
Watch Aasif Mandvi destroy Fox Business’ Todd Wilemon in this outstanding segment on the state of healthcare in America (and specifically, Knoxville, Tennessee)
Watch Aasif Mandvi destroy Fox Business’ Todd Wilemon in this outstanding segment on the state of healthcare in America (and specifically, Knoxville, Tennessee)
Watch Aasif Mandvi destroy Fox Business’ Todd Wilemon in this outstanding segment on the state of healthcare in America (and specifically, Knoxville, Tennessee)
Watch Aasif Mandvi destroy Fox Business’ Todd Wilemon in this outstanding segment on the state of healthcare in America (and specifically, Knoxville, Tennessee)
Watch Aasif Mandvi destroy Fox Business’ Todd Wilemon in this outstanding segment on the state of healthcare in America (and specifically, Knoxville, Tennessee)
Watch Aasif Mandvi destroy Fox Business’ Todd Wilemon in this outstanding segment on the state of healthcare in America (and specifically, Knoxville, Tennessee)
Watch Aasif Mandvi destroy Fox Business’ Todd Wilemon in this outstanding segment on the state of healthcare in America (and specifically, Knoxville, Tennessee)
In Brief is authored by the staff, board, and contributors of the Northwest Progressive Institute, a netroots powered strategy center working to raise America's quality of life through innovative research and imaginative advocacy.
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