Democrats take their turn at improving Affordable Care Act
The revised, Republican-drafted U.S. Senate bill to repeal and replace the Affordable Care Act has garnered much media attention but you probably didn't hear much about a proposal released last week from a group of 10 House Democrats to fix problems in the act.
The Democratic proposal seeks to protect people with pre-existing conditions and tackle rising premiums and deductibles. It also seeks to provide more insurance choices for consumers and encourage more people to enroll in ACA, according to its drafters, the New Democrat Coalition Affordable and Accessible Health Care Task Force.
The plan, which drew an initial favorable response from Rep. Robin Kelly, D-Matteson, chairwoman of the Congressional Black Caucus Health Braintrust, calls for creating a $15 billion reinsurance fund to provide payments to insurers enrolling people with serious illnesses. It also calls for the continuation of cost-sharing reduction payments to insurers to help them offset the costs of offering discounts to low-income people.
Uncertainty in the industry about the payments is leading to fewer consumer choices and driving up premiums, task force representatives stated when they unveiled their plan.
More: http://www.chicagotribune.com/suburbs/daily-southtown/opinion/ct-sta-knowles-column-st-0718-20170717-story.html
This file photo taken on June 28, 2017 shows protesters against the Republicans' health care bill holding a rally outside the U.S. Capitol in Washington, D.C. (Saul Loeb / AFP/Getty Images)