Civil and Human Rights Coalition Condemns House GOP Bill to Replace ACA

Economic Justice News, Health Care News 03.7,17

WASHINGTON – Wade Henderson, president and CEO of The Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights, issued the following statement in response to the House Republican proposal released Monday to replace the Affordable Care Act (ACA) and reverse the expansion of Medicaid. Last week, The Leadership Conference, the National Health Law Program, the National Partnership for Women and Families, and more than 80 other organizations sent a letter to Congress urging opposition to any repeal of the ACA, any attempt to transform Medicaid into a block grant or impose a per capita cap, and any attempt to defund Planned Parenthood health centers:

“This proposal is truly disheartening. It doesn’t ensure that all Americans will continue to have health coverage, as its supporters claim. Rather, it drastically cuts financial assistance for low-income people living at or below the poverty line, undermines and places severe limitations on the Medicaid expansion, and proposes to defund Planned Parenthood centers from the Medicaid program.

Repealing and replacing the ACA and restructuring Medicaid with this plan would be detrimental to many communities that The Leadership Conference represents, in particular people of color and underserved populations. The ACA has resulted in millions of Americans gaining access to affordable and quality health care. Our most vulnerable populations are at risk of losing the coverage on which their lives depend.

We need a plan that serves the health needs of all Americans. This plan would do just the opposite and should be rejected.”

Wade Henderson is president and CEO of The Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights, a coalition charged by its diverse membership of more than 200 national organizations to promote and protect the rights of all persons in the United States. The Leadership Conference works toward an America as good as its ideals. For more information on The Leadership Conference and its 200-plus member organizations, visit www.civilrights.org.

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