Rep. Ross: “Instead of making health care more affordable, Trump and his Republican allies in Congress have made it more expensive and less accessible.”
WASHINGTON, DC — Today, Defend America Action is releasing a new report, first published by Cardinal & Pine, highlighting the devastating health care crisis Donald Trump and Republicans have created for North Carolina.
Defend America Action also hosted a press call this afternoon with Congresswoman Deborah Ross (D-NC-02), State Senator Jay Chaudhuri, Canton Mayor Zeb Smathers, and local health care advocate Stacy Staggs to discuss Trump’s health care crisis and its consequences for North Carolinians.
“Instead of making health care more affordable, Trump and his Republican allies in Congress have made it more expensive and less accessible,” said U.S. Representative Deborah Ross. “They refused to extend the Affordable Care Act tax credits that helped nearly 900,000 North Carolinians afford their health insurance. As a result, premiums have skyrocketed for many families, and nearly 165,000 North Carolinians have already lost or dropped their ACA coverage entirely.”
“$2,700. That’s what a 60-year-old couple in our state, making $85,000 a year, doing everything right, now has to find every single month just to keep health care coverage they already had,” said State Senator Jay Chaudhuri. “80% of the people renewing their Affordable Care Act plans this year say that costs went up, and more than half say they’re cutting back on food and basic necessities just to hold on to coverage that they’ve already paid for.”
“This is a political issue, but more importantly, this is an American issue. This is affecting Democrats, Republicans, every race, every background, no matter who you voted for,” said Canton Mayor Zeb Smathers. “But to understand this issue, you have to understand who is in charge in Washington. We have to ask our colleagues on the other side of the aisle: What are you doing? Because these are your friends and families that are facing the same challenges.”
“My daughter Emma has Medicaid because her clinical medical needs are so high that she qualifies for our state’s CAP/C Medicaid waiver,” said Stacy Staggs. “This is what my husband and I discuss at our kitchen table: how can we squeeze any pennies out of other parts of our budget so that we can prepare for the worst thing to happen to our family, which would be Emma losing Medicaid?”
A recording of the press call is available here. Defend America Action’s new North Carolina health care report is available here.
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