Washington D.C. – A new national YouGov/CBS poll found a staggering 40 percent of voters say the Trump-GOP Big Ugly Bill passed last year has “hurt” them or their family, while 21 percent say they’ve seen no benefit at all. The survey comes as NBC News reports that insurance costs are poised to spike again next year for most Americans after Trump and Republicans like Anna Paulina Luna (R-FL-13) robbed $1 trillion from Medicaid and the Affordable Care Act (ACA) to pay for tax breaks for billionaires and big corporations.
Brad Woodhouse, President of Save My Care: “So many families are worse off than they were before Trump-Luna Big Ugly Bill dug its claws into the economy. Since Republicans ripped away tax credits from working families, millions have seen their monthly premiums jump by hundreds, if not thousands, of dollars – and millions have been forced to drop coverage altogether. Gas, food and housing are all more expensive than the year before, and we already know health premiums will be even worse next year. Trump and his accomplices in Congress like Rep. Luna hatched a raw deal: a full-blown affordability crisis for working people in exchange for more tax breaks for billionaires and big corporations. It’s no mystery why so many voters see the Big Ugly law as a punch in the gut, and why Rep. Luna desperately wants Florida families to forget who brought the pain.”
KEY REASONS WHY 40% OF VOTERS SAY THE BIG UGLY LAW “HURT” THEM AND THEIR FAMILIES:
Anna Paulina Luna claimed that the bill she voted for “puts working and middle class Americans FIRST!” but the reality is:
- An estimated 566,238 Floridians have already lost their Medicaid, CHIP, or ACA coverage after Republicans gutted health care.
- 1.5 million Floridians in total are anticipated to become uninsured between 2025 and 2034.
- Nearly 100,000 Floridians living in Anna Pualina Luna’s district were receiving tax credits to make their health care more affordable. Now premiums for Floridians receiving ACA tax credits increased by an average of 132% this year:
- A 45-year-old in Florida making $64,000 saw their average annual premium costs rise by $3,821 to hit $9,261 this year.
- A 60-year-old couple in Florida making $85,000 saw their average annual premium costs rise by $27,586 to hit $34,811 this year.
- A family of four in Florida making $130,000 saw their average annual premium costs rise by $15,154to hit $26,204 this year.
FLORIDA HEALTH CARE PROVIDERS AT RISK
- Now, thanks to Republicans gutting the premium tax credits and hiking Floridians’ premiums, providers in Florida will lose an additional $6.7 billion in funding and face a 18.1% spike in uncompensated care demand.
- Florida hospitals alone are expected to lose $40.9 billion over the next decade. 11 health care providers in the state are at-risk, announced cuts, are closing, or have closed:
- AT-RISK: Lakeside Medical Center
- CUTS ANNOUNCED: Sanitas Medical Center
- CLOSURE ANNOUNCED: miCare Clinic
- CLOSED: Connolly Dermatology – Miami Beach, Jackson South Medical Center Labor & Delivery Unit, Jupiter Medical Center – Pediatric Unit, Osprey PolyClinic, Planned Parenthood – Gainesville Health Center, Planned Parenthood – Lakeland Health Center, UF Health Leesburg Hospital – Labor & Delivery Unit, Walking Urgent Care Coral Springs Clinic
VOICES FROM THE TAMPA BAY AREA
Judy from Clearwater: “It was her husband’s two strokes in October that first brought Judy Jackson into the Clearwater Free Clinic after his hospital stay. ‘I didn’t go to the doctor, couldn’t afford it,’ she says. ‘They went to discharge him, because we didn’t have any insurance, they referred us here.’ Her husband worked as a truck driver before the strokes; Jackson works part-time as a cafeteria worker, but they have no employer-sponsored insurance, and Obamacare premiums are too high to afford. ‘It’s hard,’ she adds. ‘You go through aches and pains, and you force yourself to get up and go to work.’”
Linda from Tampa: “‘For the first time in our lives, we will go without health insurance,’ said Linda Misner, a businesswoman in Tampa. ‘We do the best we can, but we can’t afford $40,000 a year in just health care premiums.’” “Misner said she has a basic insurance plan and would still have to pay out of pocket, on top of her increased premium. ‘We will be part of the uninsured in Florida, which just blows my mind, honestly, and how is that acceptable?’ she said.”
PREVIOUS FROM SAVE MY CARE:
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