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If
ACA is repealed there will be a price to pay by you, our state,
and our nation. We are learning more every day about the benefits
of ACA for our families. We have heard about the benefits for our
federal government, and we are now beginning to understand that
ACA will actually help Tennessee solve its budget problem. Our first
example comes from a Shelby county study of the impact of ACA. Click
here for this study.
Besides
the state budget, what are the benefits for Tennesseans? See below:
The
Price of Repealing the Affordable Care Act: Tennessee
As a result
of the Affordable Care Act, families will soon be free from the
constant worry that they will not be able to get health care when
they need it the most. But repealing the law would strip Americans
of this new freedom and take us back to the days when big insurance
companies had the power to decide what care residents of Tennessee
could receive—allowing them to once again deny coverage to
children with pre-existing conditions, cancel coverage when people
get sick, and place limits on the amount of care people can get,
even if they need it. What’s more, without the law, insurance
companies could overcharge for insurance just to boost their profits,
or use fine print to deny medical treatments that are covered under
people’s policies.
In addition,
repealing the law would add at least a trillion dollars to the deficit,
which America cannot afford, nor do we want to pass that debt to
our children and grandchildren.
At a time when Tennessee residents will soon be finally free from
worrying that affordable coverage will not be available to them
and their families when they need it the most, repealing the Affordable
Care Act would be devastating. Tennessee residents, providers, small
businesses and other employers would be denied critical new benefits
of the law, from protections against insurance industry abuses to
new coverage options and millions of dollars in support so states
like Tennessee can deliver quality, affordable health care options
to all of its residents. Without the Affordable Care Act:
Critical
Consumer Protections Would Be Lost:
- 23,100 young
adults would lose their insurance coverage through their parents’
health plans, sometimes just after they finish school and as they
are looking for a job. Families across Tennessee would lose the
peace of mind the Affordable Care Act provides by making sure
that young adults can stay on their parents plan to age 26 if
they do not have coverage of their own.
- Nearly 3.2
million residents of Tennessee with private insurance coverage
would suddenly find themselves vulnerable again to having lifetime
limits placed on how much insurance companies will spend on their
health care.
- Insurance
companies would once again be allowed cut off someone’s
coverage unexpectedly when they are in an accident or become sick
because of a simple mistake on an application. This would leave
351,000 people in Tennessee at risk of losing their insurance
at the moment they need it most, as one of the worst abuses of
the insurance industry would become legal again.
- Nearly 3.2
million residents of Tennessee would not know if they are receiving
value for their health insurance premium dollars, as insurers
in state would no longer be required to spend at least 80 to 85
percent of premium dollars on health care rather than CEO salaries,
bonuses, and corporate profits.
- New insurance
plans would no longer be required to cover recommended preventive
services, like mammograms and flu shots, without cost sharing,
nor would they have to guarantee enrollees the right to choose
any available primary care provider in the network or see an OB-GYN
without a referral.
- 995,000 seniors
in Tennessee who have Medicare coverage would be forced to pay
a co-pay to receive important preventive services, like mammograms
and colonoscopies.
- Medicare
would no longer pay for an annual check-up visit, so 995,000 seniors
in Tennessee who have Medicare coverage would have to pay extra
if they want to stay healthy by getting check-ups regularly.
- 63,619 on
Medicare Would See Significantly Higher Prescription Drug Costs:
In Tennessee, 63,619 Medicare beneficiaries received a one-time,
tax-free $250 rebate to help pay for prescription drugs in the
“donut hole” coverage gap in 2010. Medicare beneficiaries
who fall into the “donut hole” in 2011 will be eligible
for 50 percent discounts on covered brand name prescription drugs.
Without the law, the burden of high prescription drug costs would
hurt millions of Medicare beneficiaries across the country.
- Tennessee
Would Not Receive Additional Resources to Crack Down on Unreasonable
Insurance Premium Increases: States would not have new resources
to review proposed health insurance premium increases and hold
insurance companies accountable for unjustified premiums increases.
- Tennessee
Would Not Receive Additional Funds to Plan for a Health Insurance
Exchange: States would not have new resources to build a new,
competitive, private health insurance marketplace for consumers
that provides lower costs, one-stop insurance shopping, and greater
benefits and protections.
- Tennessee
Would Not Receive Additional Funds to Support a Consumer Assistance
Program: States would not have new resources to help protect consumers
from some of the worst insurance industry practices.
- 81 Employers
Would Not Be Receiving Help from the Early Retiree Reinsurance
Program: Businesses, schools and other educational institutions,
unions, State and local governments, and non-profits would not
be receiving much-needed financial relief to help early retirees
and their families continue to have quality, affordable health
coverage. Find a list of organizations in your state that would
not have been accepted into this program here.
Posted January
4, 2011. Click here
for a PDF of this document.
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