Trumpcare Will Hurt American Workers

Trumpcare would be devastating to American workers. The nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office has confirmed that 23 million fewer people will have health insurance , including three million who will lose access to a job-based plan. Forty-thousand people in my district alone could lose their health insurance. We should be working together to grow the economy and create jobs, not take away health insurance from working families who need it.

Trumpcare also repeals many of the vital protections working families rely on. For millions of American workers, the Affordable Care Act (ACA) means that losing a job does not mean losing access to insurance. By guaranteeing coverage for people with pre-existing conditions and with the establishment of the Marketplaces and subsidies, workers now have health care options outside of their employers if they need them. I worked as an electrician for years and was an hourly worker. While I was lucky enough to be the member of a strong local union and received benefits, not every hourly worker is provided with healthcare options through their job.

Millions of Americans with pre-existing health conditions have no longer had to worry about being denied coverage or charged higher premiums due to their health status because of the consumer protections under the ACA. That means that if a worker leaves a job to start a business or take time to care for his or her family, there isn’t a reason to worry. That worker has protections against discrimination based on a pre-existing condition. Under Trumpcare, states would be allowed to waive pre-existing protections. Workers would have fewer insurance options and would no longer have guaranteed protections for themselves or members of their family.

Working families need higher wages, but until Congress acts to raise the wage, it’s that much more critical for Americans to feel secure that they’ll have health care when they need it. Trumpcare does the opposite.

Not only does Trumpcare hurt workers directly in reference to their own coverage, but it also hurts workers in the health industry. Trumpcare’s cuts to Medicaid and cuts to subsidies for private insurance means fewer funds would go to local hospitals and health centers that support millions of jobs. Estimates show there would be around two million fewer jobs in the industry.

Fewer families with health insurance, less security for workers with pre-existing conditions and fewer jobs overall equals a bad deal for the American worker.