“In this building, maybe it’s about the politics, but in the real world and in Georgia, this is life or death,” Sen. Ossoff said
In June, Sen. Ossoff offered an amendment to the Trump budget bill to extend key Affordable Care Act tax credits, but Republicans blocked Sen. Ossoff’s amendment
Washington, D.C. — Ahead of this week’s Senate vote, U.S. Senator Jon Ossoff is calling on Senate Republicans to put politics aside and prevent massive increases to Georgians’ premiums.
Today, Sen. Ossoff spoke from the U.S. Senate to urge Senate Republicans to put politics aside and extend the ACA enhanced premium tax credits before open enrollment ends this coming Monday, December 15.
If the ACA tax credits expire at the end of the year, 1.4 million Georgians could see their premiums double and 460,000 Georgians could lose health insurance altogether because they cannot afford the price increases.
“In this building, maybe it’s about the politics, but in the real world and in Georgia, this is life or death. Half a million Georgians are projected to lose their insurance altogether. Millions more will see huge increases in their health insurance premiums. My constituents cannot afford this. Some of my constituents cannot survive this,” Sen. Ossoff said.
“I’m calling on our Republican colleagues to put politics aside. It is almost Christmas. It’s almost the holiday season. We should let our care and concern and goodwill for our constituents motivate us and guide us in these next few days. There’s an opportunity on Thursday to come together and prove to the American people that no matter how divided we seem, we can unite to prevent these catastrophic increases in health insurance premiums,” Sen. Ossoff continued.
Click here to watch Sen. Ossoff’s remarks during the press conference.
Sen. Ossoff has been working for months to extend the ACA tax credits.
In June, Sen. Ossoff offered an amendment to the Trump budget bill to extend key Affordable Care Act tax credits, but Republicans blocked Sen. Ossoff’s amendment.
In July and in August, Sen. Ossoff spoke alongside affected Georgians and warned about the upcoming premium hikes and urged Congress to take action to fix its mistake, and last week, Sen. Ossoff again spoke out about the urgent need to extend the ACA subsidies and prevent massive health care premium increases.
This fall, Sen. Ossoff’s office also published testimonial videos of Georgians warning what may happen if ACA tax credits expire, with some warning they may not be able to afford care altogether.
Please find a transcript of Sen. Ossoff’s remarks below:
SEN. OSSOFF: “It might be helpful just to take this conversation out of Washington and invite you down to Georgia, where I’m hearing from constituents every day what this is going to mean for them right now.
“I heard just a few days ago from one of my constituents, a single mother with four children who gets her insurance through the Affordable Care Act exchange, and her medication costs $20,000 per dose. She needs four doses per year. Her premiums are about to go up by 500%.
“I heard from another constituent a few days ago, a woman in her early 60s who waits tables for a living, who’s fighting breast cancer. She needs chemo monthly. Her premiums are now going to be $500 per month. She can’t afford it. She’s going to have to give up her insurance in the middle of chemotherapy while she’s fighting breast cancer.
“What are people supposed to do when they lose health insurance in the middle of a cancer battle?
“What are parents supposed to do who already can’t make ends meet who are going to see their premiums go up 500% when they need life-saving medicine that, without insurance, costs $80,000 per year?
“So, in this building, maybe it’s about the politics, but in the real world and in Georgia, this is life or death.
“Half a million Georgians are projected to lose their insurance altogether. Millions more will see huge increases in their health insurance premiums. My constituents cannot afford this. Some of my constituents cannot survive this.
“And so, I’m calling on our Republican colleagues to put politics aside. It is almost Christmas. It’s almost the holiday season. We should let our care and concern and goodwill for our constituents motivate us and guide us in these next few days.
“There’s an opportunity on Thursday to come together and prove to the American people that no matter how divided we seem, we can unite to prevent these catastrophic increases in health insurance premiums. Thank you all.”
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