The wealthy insurance industry fought tooth & nail to oppose Federal health care reform legislation in 2009 and 2010…even going as far as threatening to stop selling child-only policies to families with children with “pre-existing conditions” in order to weasel their way out of complying with provisions under the Affordable Care Act.
But thanks to the thousands of calls, e-mails, faxes and letters from dedicated health care supporters like you- California has gone above & beyond the Federal health care law by passing AB2244, which went into effect on January 1st!
The new state law, sponsored by HCAN-CA’s lead state partner, Health Access California, “bars insurers that refuse to sell policies exclusively for children from the broader individual market for five years. It also limits the amount insurers can charge for covering children with serious health conditions to no more than twice what they would charge healthier children.” (San Francisco Chronicle)
Now, as a result of this new law, “all insurers have notified the state Department of Insurance of their intention to resume sales.” (Los Angeles Times)
But this is just the beginning! Many other key provisions from the new health law are already going into effect this month, and that’s why it’s so imperative that we keep up the pressure and oppose efforts by Congressional Republicans and insurance industry lobbyists to repeal the Federal health care law!
Today marks the first day of the 112th Congress with its Republican majority bought and paid for by Wall Street-run corporations and their shill groups like the U.S. Chamber of Commerce. It comes as no surprise that one of the Republicans’ first items is to repeal the Affordable Care Act (ACA) and all the benefits and consumer protections that we’ve fought so hard to achieve.1 And what are they replacing it with? NOTHING.
Click here to automatically sign the petition that says: “Republicans in Congress shouldn’t give our health care back to the insurance companies and sentence more than 30000 Americans a year to death because they can’t afford health insurance.”
Everyone already knows that the Republican Party is a wholly-owned subsidiary of the health insurance industry2 and other profit-hungry corporations. In case there was any doubt, the Republicans have hired insurance and health care industry lobbyists for key positions on committees and members’ staffs.3 So far, two health care industry lobbyists have joined the powerful House Energy & Commerce Committee, which has jurisdiction over health care legislation. One of them was named staff director. In addition, a top lobbyist from the medical device industry has joined Boehner’s staff as policy director.4
When you cut through the political hyperbole, the GOP’s search-and-destroy mission is serious business. Thankfully we have a strong Democratic caucus in the House and a majority in the Senate to fight back. The repeal vote in the House scheduled for next week is part of an all-out assault on the new law in the Congress, the courts and state legislatures. And it’s an assault with well-funded corporate sponsors.
After a century of legislative and political combat over health care, working families and small businesses and ended the insurance companies’ stranglehold on our health care. Naturally, Boehner wants to roll back the new health care law and let the health insurance companies resume their reign of terror. That’s why Boehner and his band of corporate shills, including House Majority Leader Eric Cantor5, Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell6 and a raft of presidential wannabes7, have made repealing the health care law the top priority for 2011 for the Republican Party.
Your dedication and support helped pass AB2244, and several other essential laws that have gone a long way towards implementing and improving upon Federal health reform here in California!
Now is the time for us to send this Congress a message. We will not go back. We will not let them play partisan political games with our rights as consumers or with the lives of our families.
