Watch: Sens. Baldwin, Sanders and Slotkin call for 1-year extension of ACA tax credits

Key Concepts

• Affordable Care Act (ACA) Tax Credits: Financial assistance provided to individuals and families to help them afford health insurance purchased through the ACA marketplace.
• Premium Increases: The rise in the cost of health insurance premiums.
• Health Care Crisis: A situation characterized by unaffordable healthcare costs, lack of access, and a dysfunctional system.
• Medicaid Cuts: Reductions in funding or eligibility for the Medicaid program, which provides health coverage to low-income individuals and families.
• Single-Payer System (Medicare for All): A healthcare system where a single public entity finances healthcare for all citizens.
• Amendment 3947: A specific amendment being discussed and potentially tabled.
• Baldwin Amendment 3950: Senator Baldwin's proposed amendment to extend ACA tax credits for one year.

Senator Baldwin's Amendment to Extend ACA Tax Credits

Senator Baldwin is proposing to table Amendment 3947 to offer her own amendment, Baldwin 3950, which aims to extend the Affordable Care Act (ACA) tax credits for one year. She states that this action is necessary because Republican colleagues are refusing to act, which will lead to health insurance premiums doubling for over 20 million Americans.

The Health Care Crisis and Republican Inaction

Senator Baldwin asserts that Americans have clearly indicated they are facing a health care crisis, and this situation is not a matter for negotiation. She attributes the current predicament to Donald Trump and Congressional Republicans who have refused to address the significant increase in American premiums. For months, these Republicans have allegedly refused to even discuss the issue.

Key Figures and Estimates:

• Estimates suggest that 22 million Americans will experience an average doubling of their premiums.

Personal Testimonies and the Impact on Families

Senator Baldwin shares compelling examples from her constituents in Wisconsin to illustrate the human cost of these premium increases:

• A couple in Door County, Wisconsin, reported their monthly premium rising by over $550, amounting to an additional $6,500 annually.
• Another couple from Butternut, Wisconsin, faces a drastic increase from $400 per month to over $5,000 per month, which translates to $55,000 more per year.

These constituents emphasize that health care tax breaks are not mere figures but a "lifeline" that provides security against financial ruin due to illness. Senator Baldwin highlights that behind each of the 22 million Americans relying on these tax credits is a family struggling with budgeting and making difficult choices about their healthcare needs. She finds it "unconscionable" that individuals are logging onto Healthcare.gov and discovering they can no longer afford health insurance.

The Urgency of Action and Compromise

Senator Baldwin stresses the need for immediate action, stating, "Addressing this demands that we act now, not in a week, not next month, but now." She dismisses a "handshake deal" with Republicans to reopen the government without a guarantee of lowering costs as insufficient. Her constituents need affordable healthcare, not just symbolic votes.

She has been working on a bill to make these tax credits permanent for over a year, but her Republican colleagues have repeatedly blocked these efforts, leading to the current situation where 22 million Americans face higher healthcare costs.

Senator Baldwin has been clear for 41 days that she is willing to work with anyone to reopen the government and lower healthcare costs. Her current amendment is a pragmatic step:

• It is a "straightforward" one-year extension of current law.
• It aims to "stop costs from skyrocketing."
• It provides time to "negotiate on health care costs without leaving 22 million Americans in the lurch."

While acknowledging that this is not her ideal solution for making healthcare affordable "forever," she is willing to compromise to "avoid catastrophe for the families I work for." She is demanding a vote to provide immediate relief.

Republican Support and the Need for Action

Senator Baldwin notes that she has spoken with many Republican colleagues who want to address rising healthcare costs for their constituents, particularly those in "red states" who will be "the hardest hit." She urges them to act now. Her sincere hope is that her colleagues will join her in helping 22 million Americans "rest easier."

Senator Sanders' Perspective on the Health Care System

Senator Sanders echoes Senator Baldwin's concerns, framing the issue as a fundamental problem with the American healthcare system.

The Impact of Premium Increases

He highlights the potential for premiums to double, triple, or quadruple for individuals, including those aged 65 and 63 in his state of Vermont. He argues that Senator Baldwin's amendment is a simple request to "take a deep breath" and prevent "outrageous increases" in premiums, which could lead to 15 million Americans losing their healthcare entirely due to "savage cuts to Medicaid."

Critique of the Current System and Republican Stance

Senator Sanders criticizes the current healthcare system as "broken, dysfunctional, and cruel." He points out that the United States is the only major country that does not guarantee healthcare to every citizen, a fact he believes is not a source of pride.

Key Data Points:

• The U.S. spends over $14,000 per person on healthcare, twice as much per capita as any other major country.
• Despite this high spending, 85 million Americans are underinsured or uninsured.

He questions whether Republicans are content with insurance and drug companies making "huge profits" and paying CEOs "exorbitant salaries," while patients struggle with a "complicated, broken system" to get the care they have paid for.

Advocating for a Single-Payer System

Senator Sanders believes the U.S. should join other industrialized nations by guaranteeing healthcare to all through a "Medicare for All single-payer system." He challenges Republicans to present a better idea if they disagree.

The Immediate Need for Extension

Regardless of long-term solutions, Senator Sanders emphasizes the immediate need to prevent premium increases of 100%, or even triple or quadruple, and to extend ACA subsidies for another year. He believes this will allow for a proper debate on healthcare, which is what the American people want.

Senator Slotkin's Support for the Amendment

Senator Slotkin of Michigan rises in support of Senator Baldwin's amendment for a "clean, one-year extension of the Healthcare.gov credits."

The Genesis of the Crisis

She explains that the current crisis was "precipitated" by Republicans in July with a bill that "slashed Medicaid and slashed coverage for people on Healthcare.gov." Hospitals and healthcare systems accepted this and began planning accordingly.

The Ripple Effect of Cuts

The response from hospitals was to anticipate that people would still require care but would be uninsured. This led to the decision to charge those with insurance "even more money."

Universal Impact of Increased Costs

Senator Slotkin highlights that this crisis has resulted in "every single American" facing either losing their health insurance or paying more, including those with private employer-provided insurance. She notes that the removal of healthy young people from the insurance pool will cause prices to double for "every single person" in her state.

Republican Lack of a Plan

She criticizes the Republicans for offering "zero plan, zero ideas" to address the healthcare crisis, even agreeing with Marjorie Taylor Greene's observation that Republicans lack a plan.

The Pragmatism of a One-Year Extension

Senator Slotkin acknowledges that "Obamacare is not perfect" and a "clean extension is not perfect." However, she argues that Republicans have "pushed people back into a corner" by using healthcare as a "bill payer" for tax cuts. She pleads for a one-year extension to allow for a "real conversation" that the American people expect.

The Magnitude of Premium Increases

She points out that without this extension, some individuals could see their health insurance increase by 600%. She urges Americans receiving notifications of significant premium increases to attribute these hikes to the Republicans if they vote against the amendment. She concludes that if her peers vote against the extension, it signifies they "don't give a crap about the cost of your health care."

Conclusion of the Debate and Call for Vote

Senator Baldwin reiterates her motion to table Amendment 3947 to offer her amendment (Baldwin 3950) for a one-year extension of ACA tax credits and requests the yeas and nays. The Presiding Officer then inquires if there is a sufficient second for the vote.