Rice Statement on Passage of the American Health Care Act

Press Release

Congressman Tom Rice (R-S.C.) today released the following statement upon passage of the American Health Care Act.

"Since I first got to Congress I've consistently heard from people all across the Seventh District of South Carolina who have been negatively affected by Obamacare. We were told if you liked your plan you could keep it. We were told premiums would go down by $2,500 per family. We were told it would provide more choice. But what we've seen is exactly the opposite: 232,000 South Carolinians had their plans canceled, premiums have increased by double digits every year and are up another 28 percent since January, and there is only one insurer left on the South Carolina Obamacare exchange. This law is failing miserably and only getting worse.

"The American Health Care Act delivers the American people from $1 trillion in Obamacare taxes that drove up health care costs across the board. It provides the option of Medicaid block grants so that individual states, not the federal government, can create a plan that works best for its residents. And, it transitions health care into a competitive, patient-centered insurance market. There are still fixes that need to be made to further improve health care, but this bill is a dramatic move forward from where we are today and is the first step in moving America's health care from an unsustainable system to a sustainable one."

Earlier today, Congressman Rice took to the floor of the House of Representatives to speak in support of the American Health Care Act.

BACKGROUND

The American Health Care Act repeals harmful Obamacare taxes like the individual and employer mandates, preserves patient protections so people won't be denied coverage for pre-existing conditions, and gives individuals and families better control of their health care by expanding Health Savings Accounts (HSAs).

The House of Representatives today also passed H.R. 2192 to fix an existing provision enacted under Obamacare by preventing Members of Congress and their staff from exempting themselves from the American Health Care Act.

The American Health Care Act and H.R. 2192 now head to the Senate for consideration.

Source