Ryan: more help for older people needed in GOP health bill

Opposition to the GOP’s proposal to replace the Affordable Care Act is swelling, and the nation’s largest advocacy group for people age 50 and older is stepping into the fray.

Kimberly Campbell, executive director of AARP Mississippi, said her organization is “staunchly opposing the bill as it’s written today”. That would contribute to what the Congressional Budget Office predicts will be a surge in the ranks of the uninsured and, in an ironic turn, potentially provide new political momentum for single-payer advocates. A 40-year-old would pay 8% to 10% less.

Ryan also said Republicans are working on changes that would allow federal block grants to states for Medicaid. The specifics of the to-be-proposed plan were not available.

The Republican health care bill to replace Obamacare is now moving through the House.

And it adds some significant reforms that were included in the Republican Better Way plan that was widely supported by GOP lawmakers a year ago.

“Is it an act of mercy to throw 24 million people off of health insurance, so Republicans can hand billionaires a massive new tax giveaway?”. The current maximum contribution is 2,500.

“I’m insisting on an increase in the tax credits, particularly for seniors”, he said. Older Americans don’t want to go backwards. “I don’t spend this kind of time as a volunteer and board chair to generate more emails”.

Right now, insurance companies are allowed to charge people over three times what other people have to pay. That’s because it eliminates a requirement that insurers sell plans with lower cost-sharing – but higher premiums – on the exchanges, CBO found.

Camille Wright, of Brandon, is transitioning from private insurance to Medicare. “I’ll do it again”, he said.

Adriana Kohler with Texans Care for Children, an advocacy group based in Austin, says Texas already leaves too many people without care. Unfortunately, Senate rules for the use of reconciliation restrict what we can include in the American Health Care Act in order to pass it with a simple majority in the Senate.

“I want to let the world know: I am 100 percent in favor”, he said of the legislation. “That’s a lot, that’s a huge number”. The program now costs the federal government around $370 billion annually and covers costs no matter the amounts.

Only half of the State of Tennessee, where he addressed a public meeting this week half, is covered. In addition, we believe that the states must have the Medicaid flexibility they need to meet the health care needs of lower income, elderly, and disabled populations.

But even if Texas gets to keep all that money, there’s another whammy – the GOP plan caps how much money states get for Medicaid from the federal government for every person they cover. When it passed Congress in 2010, its goals were to increase access to health care and to improve affordability. Robert Menendez, who says it will force states to reduce benefits or drop people from coverage.

“We’re still having conversations with our members”.

Moderate House Republicans have voiced concerns over its cuts to Medicaid, while conservatives like Amash, a House Freedom Caucus member, say the legislation does not move far enough away from ObamaCare.

“I think the proposal that’s been going through the house is awful”. The GOP replacement bill would repeal an Obamacare cap of $500,000 on how much insurance companies can deduct on their tax returns from their chief executives’ salaries.

“When they themselves are assured of health insurance the rest of their life, there is a disconnect”, she said.

Under Obamacare, some 20 million people gained coverage. Many Americans would lose their coverage, while others would not sign up. They represent knowledgeable professionals and responsible caregivers.