Civil and Human Rights Coalition Urges Congress to Work on a Bipartisan Basis to Strengthen the Affordable Care Act and Medicaid to Provide Health Care to All Americans

WASHINGTON—Wade Henderson, president and CEO of The Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights, issued the following statement following the House Republicans’ failure today to dismantle the Affordable Care Act:

“Today, the House Republican leadership was forced to withdraw their attempt to dismantle the Affordable Care Act.  This is a welcome reprieve in the seven-year attack on the law and a recognition that millions of Americans have benefited from the health coverage it provides.

Obamacare enabled tens of millions of people to gain access to affordable health care, especially those with low incomes, seniors, and people of color. If President Trump wants to uphold his repeated pledges to ensure that everyone is covered and no one loses their coverage, Republicans must work with their Democratic colleagues to find a bipartisan approach that actually does that.

Under the House Republican proposal, 24 million people—disproportionately people of color, seniors, those with low incomes and underserved—would lose their care. Instead of providing more health coverage, the GOP bill provides far less while giving significant tax cuts to the wealthy. This approach is a prescription for disaster. It’s no wonder that Americans oppose the Republican bill by a 3 to 1 margin.

Lawmakers should also end their ideological attacks on Planned Parenthood. These health centers provide essential preventive health care to underserved communities around the country. One in five Americans have used Planned Parenthood at some time in their lives. Barring Medicaid funding of Planned Parenthood’s services would have a disproportionate effect on poor families and people of color and, according to the CBO, could further jeopardize women’s access to preventive health care.

For the past seven years, we have heard a lot of baseless rhetoric about the harm caused by the ACA, but the facts tell a different story. Now is the time to work together to build on the successes of the ACA and address the remaining challenges. Nothing less than the lives, health, and well-being of the American people are at stake.”

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.