The House voted today (May 4) to replace “ObamaCare,” 217-213. All 217 votes were from Republicans (20 Republicans voted no, joining 193 Democrats).
Here is how the Valley delegation voted:
Yes:
Rep. Devin Nunes (R-Fresno/Clovis/Visalia)
Rep. David Valadao (R-Hanford)
Rep. Kevin McCarthy (R-Bakersfield/Porterville)
Rep. Jeff Denham (R-Turlock)
Rep. Tom McClintock (R-eastern Fresno County)
No:
Rep. Jim Costa (D-Fresno/Merced)
Afterward, Costa e-mailed this statement to the media:
“Congressional Republican leaders and the Trump Administration have spent several weeks negotiating, and the end result of those negotiations made a disastrous health care bill even worse. The American people have demanded solutions that improve their health care outcomes from Congress, and this legislation fails to meet that test. If the American Health Care Act is enacted into law, then millions of Americans, including many of our friends and neighbors in the San Joaquin Valley, will either see their health care costs rise substantially or they will completely lose their coverage. Unconscionably, this legislation will also reduce the health care options available to our nation’s veterans, betraying our nation’s heroes after they have served our country.”
Valadao sent this to the media:
“Obamacare is failing. Under the law, our Central Valley communities were prevented from recruiting medical professionals, our emergency rooms were overflowing, and parents were unable to choose the best healthcare options for their children. As a parent, there is absolutely nothing more important to me than ensuring families have access to quality, affordable health insurance. Possession of an insurance card does not equate to healthcare services and medical treatment. The American Health Care Act will stabilize our healthcare system, ensuring our community has access to high quality, affordable health care.”
From Nunes:
“The House of Representatives took a big step today toward abolishing the failing Obamacare program and replacing it with a system that provides much better care at lower prices. Central Valley residents have been saddled for far too long with high prices, while many Medi-Cal participants are burdened by minimal healthcare choices, with some participants even forced to travel to the Bay area or Los Angeles to see specialists. The bill passed by the House today will make healthcare available to every American who wants it while protecting those with pre-existing conditions.”
From McClintock:
Obamacare is collapsing. Last year’s average premium increase of 25 percent is expected to balloon by another 40 percent this year. Last year there was only one provider in a third of American counties; this year entire regions will be without ANY providers. This week we learned Obamacare policies will NOT be available at any price in almost all of Iowa. Last year, more Americans opted to pay the steep tax penalty or request hardship exclusions than chose to purchase Obamacare plans they didn’t want and couldn’t afford.
The American Health Care Act replaces the compulsory one-size-fits-all bureaucratic model of Obamacare with a voluntary, patient-centered system by restoring a healthy competitive market, where patients will have the widest range of choices and the freedom to choose the plan that best meets their needs – along with a supportive tax system to assure that plans are within their financial reach. Patients with pre-existing conditions are guaranteed coverage at affordable rates.
I had hoped the reforms could be enacted as a single, comprehensive bill. Conspicuously lacking in the AHCA is a provision to restore the freedom of consumers to shop across state lines, which will be vital to Californians stuck in the highly-regulated state system. But the AHCA moves us quickly toward a consumer-friendly health-care system and follow-up legislation will assure that Californians can access reformed markets in all fifty states.
Here is McCarthy’s floor speech today:
What are your thoughts? Leave your comments below.
David Taub has spent most of his career in journalism behind the scenes working as a TV assignment editor and radio producer. For more than a decade, he has worked in the Fresno market with such stops at KSEE-24, KMJ and Power Talk 96.7. Taub also worked the production and support side of some of TV sports biggest events including the Super Bowl, the NBA Finals and NASCAR to name a few. Taub graduated from the University of Michigan with dual degrees in communications and political science. You can contact David at 559-492-4037 or at Send an Email
