Senator Angus King discusses ACA pre-existing conditions coverage

Senator Angus King: “Repealing the Affordable Care Act’s (ACA) Protections for Those with Pre-Existing Conditions Will Make Things a Lot Worse for a Lot of People”

In conversation with Maine people, King emphasizes the importance of defending healthcare coverage for people with pre-existing conditions. Discussion follows an announcement from the Department of Justice that it won’t defend the guarantee of ACA coverage for pre-existing conditions in court.

Monday, June 18, 2018

SOUTH PORTLAND, ME – U.S. Senator Angus King (I-Maine) was joined by Maine people with pre-existing conditions on June 18, along with health care advocates and medical professionals in a conversation on protecting people with pre-existing conditions. Under the Affordable Care Act (ACA), people with pre-existing conditions are protected from either being denied health insurance or being priced out of the market, but a recent legal filing from the Department of Justice (DOJ) announced that it won’t defend the guarantee of ACA coverage for people with pre-existing conditions in court, which could lead to discrimination by insurance companies. The full discussion was livestreamed on the Senator’s Facebook page, and is available HERE.

“The patients, advocates and medical professionals at today’s meeting were outspoken, informed, and compelling,” said Senator King. “These Maine people were united by the fear of what could result from this disastrous DOJ decision, and by passion to fight for their lives and the lives of people in their community. Today’s discussion strengthened my belief that repealing the ACA’s protections for those with pre-existing conditions will make things a lot worse for a lot of people – especially in Maine. I’ll take these stories back to Washington, and share them with my colleagues as I continue pushing them to stand up for Americans living with pre-existing conditions.”

Senator King has been outspoken in opposition to Administration moves and legislative proposals that seek to undermine the Affordable Care Act. Last week, he released a video on his social media accounts criticizing the DOJ’s “downright cruel” decision. In October, he spoke on the Senate floor in advance of ACA Open Enrollment Period regarding the “sabotage” efforts underway from the Administration. At the same time, Senator King has pursued agreements that would improve the Affordable Care Act to protect coverage for the millions who rely on it for affordable health care, and has developed several proposals to make common sense fixes to the legislation. 

During the health care debate last summer, Senator King outlined a roadmap of health care priorities to stabilize the health care marketplace and lower the underlying costs of treatment and health coverage for people in Maine and across the country. 

Also, Senator King is a cosponsor of the bipartisan bill introduced by Senators Lamar Alexander (R-Tenn.) and Patty Murrary (D-Wash.) to stabilize the individual health insurance marketplace.

Tennessean - echo letter to the editor: America in debt

"GOP budget deal that is projected to add $1 trillion to our current $20 trillion national debt" ~ Donald Griffin

Plunging America into debt - Echo letter published in the Tennessean

Plunging America deeper in debt

On Feb. 13, Sen. Lamar Alexander sent an email that included the following:

“Congress passed and Donald Trump signed a 2-year budget agreement into law that sets priorities for our nation: fighting the opioid crisis, ending sequestration funding restrictions on our military, and improving our nation’s roads, bridges, locks and dams. It also extends funding for the community health centers that nearly 400,000 Tennesseans rely on for their health care, and extends funding for Cover Kids, which provides health insurance to nearly 74,000 Tennessee children and pregnant women.”

My response was as follows:

Sen. Alexander: You forgot to mention in your comments on the two-year budget deal that it is projected to add $1 trillion to our current $20 trillion national debt. This will become more of an issue as interest rates rise, resulting in debt service taking a larger and larger portion of the federal budget.

Also, exacerbating this problem was the removal of the debt ceiling, which will allow Congress to continue adding more debt without any meaningful debate.

Your decision to vote with the Senate Republican leadership for political purposes will encumber future generations of Americans with the burden of dealing with this massive debt.

Donald A. Griffin, Franklin