Today, President Biden and former President Obama announced new measures to build on the Affordable Care Act (ACA) and close the “family glitch” – a loophole that prevented thousands of dependents and families from accessing health care.. According to a KFF analysis the glitch affected 157,000 Michiganders in 2019, preventing them from accessing affordable health insurance. Meanwhile, Republicans are doubling down on their promise to deliver an agenda of hiking taxes and higher health insurance premiums if they take power.
Just last month, Republican Senator Ron Johnson confirmed that some Republicans still want to repeal the Affordable Care Act. That would mean that as many as 100 million Americans with preexisting conditions could lose insurance protections, Americans with private insurance could see their premiums skyrocket, 21 million Americans could lose their insurance, and more.
“President Biden and former President Obama’s joint announcement today is a reflection of the Democratic Party’s commitment to health care access over the past 12 years — by not only passing the Affordable Care Act more than a decade ago, but continuing to build upon it by passing legislation to lower health costs for Michiganders,” said Michigan Democratic Party Chair Lavora Barnes. “Meanwhile, Republicans have tried to overturn this landmark health care law 100 times and Michigan Republicans are running on a platform to try it again. When it comes to health care in the Great Lakes State, Democrats are the only ones taking action on cost-cutting solutions while Republicans try to take us backwards.”
While Republicans are pushing to overturn the ACA and raise costs, today’s announcement is just the most recent action that Democrats have taken to build on the ACA to make coverage more accessible and affordable. Thanks to the American Rescue Plan, 303,000 people in Michigan are now getting insurance through the marketplaces established by the ACA, saving on average hundreds of dollars a year – no thanks to every single Republican member of Michigan’s congressional delegation, who unanimously voted against the American Rescue Plan.
