Terri Sewell: “Today I rise to express my strong disappointment in House Republicans for starting off the New Year with the same failed…”

“Today I rise to express my strong disappointment in House Republicans for starting off the New Year with the same failed policies from 2015. The bill before us today, the so- called Restoring Americans' Healthcare Freedom Reconciliation Act, is simply more of the same. We've been here 61 times before, making today the 62nd vote to repeal or undermine the Affordable Care Act. Enough is enough. Ultimately, we are wasting time on a bill destined for a veto and have many reasons to celebrate its imminent failure. This bill is designed to take health insurance from 22 million uninsured Americans. It would cut the subsidies provided to low and middle income Americans living with diabetes and other diseases that allow them to purchase private health insurance. It would also eliminate the Prevention and Public Health Fund (PPHF), which provides investments in public health efforts to prevent and detect diseases like diabetes and cancer. In the first 6 years of the Fund's inception, $5.25 billion in resources have been sent to states, tribal, and community organizations to support community-based prevention. The Fund should be strengthened, not eliminated. This bill is also designed to repeal the ACA's Medicaid Expansion. As representative of a state that has opted not to expand its Medicaid program, I know full well the consequences of non-expansion.…”