Peter Welch: “all of us are back from being at home for the past 30 days. In my visit in Vermont, my time in Vermont visiting with…”

“all of us are back from being at home for the past 30 days. In my visit in Vermont, my time in Vermont visiting with Vermonters, one issue that came up over and over again is incredible concern about healthcare. The cost of healthcare is beyond affordability, and this is really an existential moment for our healthcare system. Let me just talk about that in general but also with respect to the impact of the One Big Beautiful Bill. Under that legislation, 45,000 Vermonters are going to lose healthcare, literally lose it altogether. More than 26,000 Vermonters will lose access to premium subsidies which make the Affordable Care Act plans more affordable. Just let me give an example that I found shocking. A family of four in Vermont who makes $82,000 a year--right now, their premium is about $7,000 under the Affordable Care Act. That premium will increase by $23,600. So the premium will then be $30,648. They have done nothing. They have done nothing, and they have no control over what the healthcare expense will be. But their premium, when they wake up on January 1, is going to go up $23,600, and that is on income of $82,000. And, by the way, Vermont does not have high income. And in that respect, I know you are concerned about your folks in West Virginia. That is not affordable. It just isn't affordable, and the citizens have no control over what those costs are. They just have to pay the bill.”