From Protect Our Care:
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ICYMI: Representative Jen Kiggans Doubles Down on Vote to Jack Up Health Care Costs for Virginia Families Rep. Kiggans says 3 years ‘is a very long time’ for families to have access to ACA tax credits A 60-year old-couple making $81,770 per year in Virginia Beach is facing a monthly premium increase of $874.32 |
| In case you missed it, Representative Jen Kiggans (VA-02) on Thursday voted to take away the Affordable Care Act (ACA) tax credits that keep health coverage affordable for more than 300,000 Virginia families. This comes after she voted to cut over $1 trillion from Medicaid and the ACA last summer to hand out tax breaks for billionaires and big corporations and push the country into a health care affordability crisis. With open enrollment underway, hard-working Virginia families are logging on to see their premiums more than doubled and facing incredibly hard choices between paying rent, affording health insurance, going into debt, or going without care altogether. Over 100,000 Virginians are expected to drop out of the Virginia Marketplace, with about half of those remaining uninsured.
Kiggans then doubled down on her vote in an appearance on NewsNation, arguing that 3 years “is a very long time” to extend these cost-saving tax credits to Virginia families. Kiggans has previously said she wants the tax credits to be phased out. In response, Protect Our Care Virginia State Director Katie Baker issued a statement: “Representative Jen Kiggans voted once again to raise health care costs on Virginians, then doubled down on that vote with the astonishing explanation that 3 years ‘is a very long time’ for families to be able to afford their health care. With full knowledge that premiums are skyrocketing and families are being forced to pay hundreds or even thousands more to stay covered, she chose to put billionaires and big corporations first while working families are left to suffer the consequences. This vote makes one thing crystal clear: when given the choice between lowering health care costs for Virginians or catering to wealthy donors, Representative Kiggans chooses the billionaires every time. Representative Kiggans lit the fuse and is now refusing to put out the inferno. As the fight moves to the Senate and families’ coverage remains on the line, Virginians will not forget who tried to sell out their health care to serve the wealthy and well-connected.” Background: Unless the Senate passes a clean, three-year extension of the ACA tax credits, the Trump-GOP premium hikes will:
AARP issued a statement pushing for a 3-year extension of the tax credits, noting that some older Americans are the hardest hit by higher premiums and being asked to pay as much as 30 percent of their income for health care. See how older couples in Virginia are hit by the GOP’s scheme to rip away ACA tax credits:
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### Protect Our Care is dedicated to making high-quality, affordable and equitable health care a right, and not a privilege, for everyone in America. We educate the public, influence policy, support health care champions and hold politicians accountable. We fight to expand access to affordable, high-quality health insurance, lower the cost of health care for individuals and families, and reduce inequities in health care based on gender, income, race, ethnicity, geography, or sexual preference. |
