Senate Expected to Resume Action on Health Care Bill

The US Senate is expected to move forward with the Republican Health Care Bill.  If you are concerned about the changes this bill would make (described in a blog), now is the time to contact your Senator.

Feinstein, Dianne – (D – CA)

331 Hart Senate Office Building Washington DC 20510

(202) 224-3841

Contact: www.feinstein.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/e-mail-me

Harris, Kamala D. – (D – CA)

112 Hart Senate Office Building Washington DC 20510

(202) 224-3553

Contact: www.harris.senate.gov/content/contact-senator

The following Talking Points have been provided by Family Voices, a national advocacy organization:

Contact your Senators now.  Tell them to oppose the Senate health care bill because:

• It will hurt my child and family by eliminating the protections of the Affordable Care Act.
• Medicaid caps will be extremely harmful to everyone who relies on Medicaid for their health, especially children and youth with special health care needs and their families.  There is no way to construct caps that will keep them from hurting everyone on Medicaid.

Messages for your lawmakers 

On June 22, the Senate released its version of the bill to “repeal and replace” this Affordable Care Act (ACA).  It is called the “Better Choices Reconciliation Act” (BCRA). Family Voices Policy staff has taken a first look.  A few notes:

• This bill has no winners and puts at risk coverage and care for children and youth who have special health care needs, whether they get their insurance through the ACA marketplace, an employer, or through  Medicaid.
• The “carve out” for blind and disabled children does not help.  It would apply only to a small number of children with special health care needs until they turn 19, and will not even protect them for the effects of the drastic cuts in Medicaid funding.

In short, kids and families are losers in this bill.  Call your Senators offices NOW.

(1)   Urge them to oppose the Senate version of the American Health Care Act. As a parent/relative/provider of a child with special health care needs, you appreciate the effort to protect some of these children, but the carve-out for blind and disabled children does not provide true protection for children and youth with special health care needs.  It is for a very narrow group of children, their special needs won’t go away when they turn 19, and even they can’t be protected from the harms of the drastic cuts due to the Medicaid caps.

(2)   Tell your family’s story: Tell them that the bill threatens critical protections and services for your child and family – protections from annual and lifetime coverage limits and unaffordable out-of-pocket expenses, and coverage of essential health benefits and services, such as Katie Beckett waiver/option coverage, home and community-based care waiver services, and Medicaid coverage for general and specialized health care. Tell them what will happen if your child and family lose these protections and services.

Mental Health America of California has provided an additional opportunity to express your concerns about this health care bill.  Please see the following message, which includes additional instructions to have your voice heard: