Senate Democrats Held Hearing on Ways the Republican Health Care Bill Would Devastate Rural America
WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, U.S. Senator Debbie Stabenow (D-Mich.), Chair of the Democratic Policy and Communications Committee, and other Senate Democrats held a hearing entitled “America Speaks Out: How the Republican Health Care Bill Would Devastate Rural America.” At this hearing, the Senators heard from rural health care providers and other experts who outlined how the health care bill moving through Congress leaves the 46 million Americans living in rural America behind and has a disproportionate impact on their ability to access quality, affordable health care. The hearing took place on the same day that the Joint Economic Committee and the Senate Special Committee on Aging released a report on the Republican health care bill’s impact on rural hospitals.
“The Republican health care proposals will dramatically raise costs and lower
health care coverage for families in small towns in Michigan and across the
country.” said Senator Stabenow. “I am grateful for the expert
witnesses from around the country who shared their testimony today about the
devastating impacts of the Republican plans on American families.”
“Repeal won’t just mean kicking Ohioans off their insurance, it could cost
people their jobs when area hospitals are forced to cut services to patients
and lay off workers,” said Senator Brown of Mr. Ennen’s testimony.
“Mr. Ennen is right. Instead of kicking 900,000 Ohioans off of their insurance,
we need to work together to lower costs and make healthcare work better for
everyone.”
“At a time of low commodity prices and drought in North Dakota, more headaches
and higher health costs are the last thing farm and ranch families need.
Instead of making quality care more affordable, the Republican health care bill
would rip health coverage from 30,000 North Dakotans and make coverage
unaffordable for even more,” said Senator Heitkamp. “By gutting
Medicaid, the bill would likely force rural hospitals to close. It would also
let insurance companies charge older folks and those with pre-existing
conditions even more for coverage. It’s outrageous that these decisions—which
impact all of us—are being made by a handful of senators in secret, behind
closed doors.”
“I am extremely grateful to this group of health care providers for taking the
time to share their concerns with us. I am especially thankful to Chuck Duarte
for his advocacy on behalf of Nevada’s rural communities and the patients he
serves at his health clinics,” said Senator Cortez Masto. “Since
the Affordable Care Act was passed, hundreds of thousands of Nevadans have
gained access to the lifesaving care they need. Today’s hearing echoed what I
have been hearing from Nevadans in rural and urban areas: hardworking families
don’t want Republicans to take away their healthcare. I stand with Mr. Duarte
in calling on Senate Republicans to abandon their efforts to repeal the
Affordable Care Act and instead, work with Democrats to improve it.”
In contrast to the more than 100 hearings and meetings that Senate Democrats held leading up to the passage of the current health care law, Congressional Republicans are ramming through their bill without a single hearing on the bill, despite calls from Democrats for an open process. Senate Democrats are committed to giving Americans an opportunity to speak out on how this bill would affect their families and communities.
U.S. Senators Patty Murray (D-Wash.), Ron Wyden (D-Ore.), Amy Klobuchar
(D-Minn.), Al Franken (D-Minn.), Richard Blumenthal (D-Conn.), Tammy Baldwin
(D-Wis.), Martin Heinrich (D-N.M.), Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.), Heidi Heitkamp
(D-N.D.), Maggie Hassan (D-N.H.), and Catherine Cortez Masto (D-Nev.)
participated in the hearing.
Details on the witnesses and links to their testimony are available below:
- Heidi Mansir – Gardiner, ME: Ms. Mansir is the Executive Director of Uplift, Inc. based in central Maine. Uplift provides services to adults with intellectual disabilities, and over 95 percent of their revenue comes from Medicaid. Ms. Mansir will testify how cuts to Medicaid jeopardize the ability of organizations like hers to provide care. TESTIMONY VIDEO
- Moira Pyhala – Soldotna, AK: Moira is a student at the University of Alaska Anchorage who grew up in a small town in Alaska. When she was sexually assaulted by a friend at age 15, she had no idea where to turn. Luckily, she lived just a few blocks from a rural Planned Parenthood, where she went to seek care. In her words, “The women at Planned Parenthood not only provided me with health services [at no cost], but also the tools to recover from what had happened to me.” TESTIMONY VIDEO
- Chuck Duarte – Washoe County, NV: Mr. Duarte is the CEO of Community Health Alliance (CHA), a federally qualified health center (FQHC) that serves Washoe County, Nevada. Mr. Duarte will address how arbitrary caps on Medicaid would force Nevada to decide whether to reduce eligibility, reimbursement and payments to providers, or both. For the health center he runs, this would mean a significant decline in revenue and scaling back of services. TESTIMONY VIDEO
- Denise Campbell – Elkins, WV: Mrs. Campbell is a former West Virginia State Representative (2010-2016) from Elkins, West Virginia who is a nurse by training. While in the state legislature, Ms. Campbell represented Randolph and Pocahontas Counties – two of the most rural counties in West Virginia. She will address the importance of Medicaid funding for nursing homes and seniors and the success of Medicaid expansion in West Virginia. TESTIMONY VIDEO
- Phil Ennen – Bryan, OH: Mr. Ennen is the President and CEO of Community Hospitals and Wellness Centers (CHWC), a small hospital system that serves Williams County in northwest Ohio. After Ohio expanded Medicaid, CHWC was able to expand their patient programs and give their employees an across-the-board wage increase. CHWC is the single largest employer in its community. TESTIMONY VIDEO
- National Farmers Union President, Roger Johnson – Turtle Lake, ND: Mr. Johnson is the president of the National Farmers Union (NFU), a national grassroots organization that represents more than 200,000 family farmers, ranchers, fishers, and rural communities across the U.S. Mr. Johnson will outline how the health care bill moving through Congress right now is a serious step in the wrong direction for farmers and ranchers who need access to affordable health coverage. TESTIMONY ADDENDUM – WISCONSIN FARMER VIDEO
