WASHINGTON, D.C. – Joint Economic Committee Democrats today released three reports on the dangerous threats TrumpCare poses to Americans across the country. The findings in these reports conclude that the latest Republican bill would make it harder for rural Americans to obtain health insurance; cut funding used for the treatment of substance use disorders (SUDs); and limit access to and increase costs for mental health services. The reports, “Rural Americans Lose Bigly Under TrumpCare,” “TrumpCare Undermines Fight Against Opioid Epidemic,” and “TrumpCare Reverses ACA Gains for Mental Health,” outline how millions of Americans would lose under TrumpCare.
The reports’ key findings are listed below:
- TrumpCare would have devastating impacts on rural America. Many rural Americans who live in Medicaid expansion states would lose coverage. Altogether, 2.9 million rural Americans could lose coverage by 2020 if the bill passes.
- The Republican bill to repeal the health care law would remove the guarantee that state Medicaid programs provide SUD treatment. The proposal also would repeal Medicaid expansion, cutting about $4.5 billion from treatment for mental health disorders and SUDs—nine times the increase that President Trump requested in his budget to fight the epidemic. Researchers estimate that 2.8 million Americans with SUDs would lose some or all of their insurance coverage as a result of TrumpCare.
- TrumpCare also would limit access to care for mental illnesses by cutting $880 billion from Medicaid, culminating in 14 million fewer Medicaid enrollees by 2026, and repealing minimum standards that require insurers to cover mental health services.
Links to the reports can be found below:
Rural Americans Lose Bigly Under TrumpCare
TrumpCare Undermines Fight Against Opioid Epidemic
TrumpCare Reverses ACA Gains for Mental Health
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For more information, please contact Latoya Veal at Latoya_Veal@jec.senate.gov or 202-224-0379.
