Russell Blair
New legislation to repeal and replace the Affordable Care Act contains the same cuts to Medicaid that would devastate Connecticut financially, the state's two senators said Thursday.
"The biggest problem for Connecticut has always been the Medicaid cuts," Sen. Chris Murphy said of the revised bill Senate Republicans released to overhaul Obamacare. "The needle has not moved for Connecticut with this new version.""This Republican revision is eyeliner on a pig," said Sen Richard Blumenthal. "They have doctored it and concocted nips and tucks that make it seem better, and added sweeteners for some Republican critics, but it is essentially unchanged."
The bill slashes Medicaid funding for the states, which would cost Connecticut billions of dollars a year. Changes include provisions allowing insurers to sell plans that don't guarantee coverage of certain health conditions or charge more for individuals with pre-existing conditions, both meant to win over conservative Republican senators.
"It is inconceivable that Senate Republicans would move even further toward jeopardizing the cost and quality of coverage for people with pre-existing conditions simply to appease some of their most radical members," Gov. Dannel P. Malloy said in a written statement. "Reducing costs by eviscerating coverage is simply not a workable solution and will not fool the American people – it will create greater instability."
The new legislation includes an additional $45 billion for states to combat the increase in opioid overdoses, but critics say that money is not enough and the cuts to Medicaid would ultimately hamper many patients' ability to get treatment.
Blumenthal, who has been organizing "emergency field hearings" where constituents can weigh in on the health care debate, has planned another for Friday afternoon at Mitchell College in New London.
Cuts to Medicaid would be particularly harmful to Connecticut, which expanded the program under the Affordable Care Act. Malloy's budget office said the impact in Connecticut would be $2.9 billion a year by 2026. The Congressional Budget Officeestimated the prior Senate Republican health care bill would cut total Medicaid funding by 35 percent in 2036.
Democrats on Congress' Joint Economic Committee released an analysis this week that looked at the budget cuts states would have to undertake if they wanted to maintain Medicaid funding at its current levels if the 35 percent cut occurred. Connecticut, for example, would have to cut higher education funding by 45 percent or transportation funding by 58 percent to bridge the gap, according to the report.
Blumenthal said senators have been told to expect a score on the new bill from the nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office Monday, with a procedural vote coming as early as Tuesday and a final vote as early as Thursday. Legislation to repeal Obamacare has already passed in the House.
Its still unclear if Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell has enough members of his caucus on board to pass the latest health care bill. The same day the legislation came out, two Senate Republicans said they planned to introduce an alternative version. And Sen. Susan Collins, a moderate Republican from Maine, came out publicly against the bill and said she was ready to work with Democrats on health care.
"McConnell will go where his caucus tells him to go," said Murphy. "If there are enough Republicans that tell him [to work with Democrats] he'll have to listen."
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