News

Judge Amy Coney Barrett Has History of Opposing Affordable Care Act

Washington, DC — Tonight, multiple news outlets are reporting that President Trump has selected Judge Amy Coney Barrett as his nominee to the Supreme Court. With the court set to hear California v. Texas, a case to overturn the ACA, on November 10, Americans’ health care is on the line like never before. In response, Protect Our Care Chair Leslie Dach issued the following statement:

“From day one, President Trump has made clear that he would only nominate justices to the Supreme Court who would vote to take down the Affordable Care Act, and now with 200,000 Americans already dead, President Trump is jamming through a Supreme Court justice who will take away America’s health care in the middle of this pandemic — because one week after the election, the Supreme Court will hear his lawsuit to completely dismantle the ACA. 

“The stakes for Americans’ health care could not be higher. If Trump is successful, the lawsuit would rip health care from more than 23 million people and remove protections for the 135 million people who have a pre-existing condition, including the more than seven million Americans who have had Covid-19, all during the worst health crisis in over a century. 

“With the national spotlight now on the Supreme Court, President Trump won’t be able to hide behind his health care lies anymore. Voters will know that Donald Trump is fighting to take away protections for people with pre-existing conditions and that he and every Republican who votes for this nominee is responsible for the deaths and disease that will result.”

BACKGROUND:

AMY CONEY BARRETT

Trump Has Promised to Appoint Judges Who Will Strike Down the ACA:

As far back as 2015, Donald Trump promised that “my judicial appointments will do the right thing unlike Bush’s appointee John Roberts on ObamaCare.” Trump has also said that he is “looking to appoint judges very much in the mold of Justice Scalia.” The late Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia opposed the ACA repeatedly, famously dubbing the law “SCOTUSCare.” 

Barrett Supports Efforts to Invalidate the Affordable Care Act:

Barrett is on the record criticizing Chief Justice John Roberts for his decision to uphold Congress’s authority to enact large portions of the ACA in NFIB v. Sebelius. According to Barrett, “Roberts pushed the Affordable Care Act beyond its plausible meaning to save the statute,” and, “If the majority did not enact a ‘tax,’ interpreting the statute to impose a tax lacks democratic legitimacy.” 

If the Affordable Care Act is struck down:

• GONE: Protections for 135 million Americans with pre-existing conditions. The uninsured rate will increase by 65 percent. 
• GONE: Medicaid expansion, which covers more than 16 million people. 
• GONE: Nearly 12 million seniors will have to pay more for prescription drugs because the Medicare ‘donut hole’ will be reopened.
• GONE: 2.3 million adult children will no longer be able to stay on their parents’ insurance. 
• GONE: Insurance companies will be able to charge women 50 percent more than men.
• GONE: Financial assistance that helps 9 million people purchase health care in the marketplace.
• GONE: Key support for rural hospitals. 
• GONE: Ban on insurance companies having lifetime caps on coverage.
• GONE: Requirements that insurance companies cover prescription drugs and maternity care.
• GONE: 60 million Medicare beneficiaries will face higher costs and disruptions to their medical care. 

Barrett also praised the dissent in King v. Burwell, where the Court affirmed tax credits for millions of families, appearing to endorse Justice Scalia’s view that the ACA should be renamed “SCOTUScare” in honor of “the Court’s willingness to ‘rewrite’ the statute in order to keep it afloat.” Barrett writes, “For Justice Scalia and those who share his commitment to uphold text, the measure of a court is its fair-minded application of the rule of law, which means going where the law leads. By this measure, it is illegitimate for the Court to distort either the Constitution or a statute to achieve what it deems a preferable result.” 

• Nearly nine million Americans rely on tax credits for coverage. Without the ACA, nearly 9 million people would lose financial assistance that helps them purchase health care in the marketplace. In 2019, the average monthly premium tax credit was $514. 

Barrett Opposed the ACA’s Mandate to Provide Contraceptive Care: 

Barrett fought against the Obama administration’s efforts to expand access to contraceptives, calling the ACA’s contraception mandate “a grave infringement on religious liberty.”

• More than 60 million patients rely on access to birth control with no out-of-pocket fees. The ACA guarantees that private health plans cover 18 methods of contraception and make them available to 62.4 million patients with no out-of-pocket costs. More than 99 percent of sexually-active women have used contraceptives at some point in their lifetimes, and approximately 60 percent of women of reproductive age currently use at least one birth control method. In addition to increasing access to this essential treatment, this ACA provision has saved money for women and their families: women saved $1.4 billion on birth control pills alone in 2013.

For more information on the impact of the Texas Lawsuit, visit: https://www.protectourcare.org/SCOTUS/

Virtual Tour “Hit the Road” for Events with Members of Congress in Michigan, New Hampshire and Minnesota

On the second week of Protect Our Care’s 16-state “Your Health, Your Vote” virtual bus tour Protect Our Care held events in Michigan, New Hampshire and Minnesota. During each stop, elected leaders, health care advocates and storytellers from each state met in a virtual format to discuss President Trump’s complete mismanagement of the coronavirus pandemic and highlight the danger of allowing President Trump to pick the next Supreme Court justice. California v. Texas, the Trump-Republican lawsuit to dismantle the Affordable Care Act, will be heard one week after the election. If successful, the lawsuit would take away protections for 135 million Americans with pre-existing conditions and rip coverage away from over 23 million Americans in the middle of a pandemic.

MICHIGAN

Tuesday, September 22, 2020: Protect Our Care’s nationwide virtual “Your Health, Your Vote” tour arrived in Michigan to highlight Republicans’ ongoing war on health care and failed coronavirus response. Headlined by Rep. Elissa Slotkin, the event highlighted how Trump’s health care sabotage, including a lawsuit to completely dismantle the Affordable Care Act during a pandemic, would impact Michiganders’ health care. They also called on Republicans to denounce Trump’s war on health care and discussed Democrats’ agenda to improve health care and lower costs for Americans.

Watch the Event Here

NEW HAMPSHIRE

Thursday, September 24, 2020: Protect Our Care’s nationwide virtual “Your Health, Your Vote” tour arrived in the Granite State to highlight the ongoing war on health care and failed local and federal coronavirus response. Headlined by Congressman Chris Pappas and Marked By Covid founder Kristin Urquiza, the event highlighted how Donald Trump’s health care sabotage, including a lawsuit to completely dismantle the Affordable Care Act during a pandemic. 

Watch the Event Here

WMUR-9: NH Primary Source: Pappas, Shaheen to Join ‘Protect Our Care’ Virtual Bus Tour

MINNESOTA

Friday, September 25, 2020: Protect Our Care’s nationwide virtual “Your Health, Your Vote” tour arrived in Minnesota to highlight Republicans’ ongoing war on health care and failed coronavirus response. Headlined by Senator Tina Smith and Congressman Dean Phillips, the event highlighted how Trump’s health care sabotage, including a lawsuit to completely dismantle the Affordable Care Act during a pandemic, would impact Minnesotans’ care. Sarah Stoesz, the President and CEO of Planned Parenthood North Central States, Clara Boykin, a member of SEIU Healthcare Minnesota, Kenza Hadj-Moussa of TakeAction also joined the event. Speakers discussed the dire emergency created by the Trump-Republican lawsuit to overturn the Affordable Care Act as well as the upcoming battle over Trump’s intent to fill a U.S. Supreme Court seat with a Justice who opposes the ACA, which would throw our entire health care system into chaos.

Watch the Event Here

Washington, DC — Yesterday, President Trump claimed he would send seniors $200 drug coupons to help cover the cost of their prescription drugs. This is just another “political ploy” from a president who is trying to obscure his catastrophic health care record for seniors. In response, Protect Our Care Chair Leslie Dach issued the following statement:

“Seniors pay far too much for prescription drugs, and the last thing they need is another false promise from President Trump who has overseen four years of drug price increases and who refuses to give Medicare the power to negotiate for lower prices — the one proven tool to make needed prescription drugs more affordable. Far from fighting the drug companies, President Trump has given them billions in tax breaks, and he doesn’t even have a plan for how to pay for and implement this latest ploy. Every independent expert says this latest promise is a sham, and nothing more than an election year stunt from a president who threatens the lives of seniors every day by his disastrous mismanagement of the coronavirus pandemic and his relentless efforts to overturn the Affordable Care Act.”

COVERAGE:

New York Times: Trump’s Discount Cards A “$6.6 Billion Election-Eve Promise With Dubious Legal Authority.” “President Trump vowed on Thursday to send $200 discount cards for prescription drugs to 33 million older Americans, a $6.6 billion election-eve promise with dubious legal authority that he announced as part of a speech billed as presenting a long-awaited health care plan.” [New York Times, 9/24/20] 

• New York Times: “It Was Not Clear Where the Money for the Cards Would Come From or Whether the White House Could Legally Issue Them.” “That left the drug discount cards as the major advance in Mr. Trump’s speech. It was not clear where the money for the cards would come from or whether the White House could legally issue them. But they amounted to a gift to a key constituency, offered weeks before Election Day.” [New York Times, 9/24/20] 

Stat: Trump’s Promise to Distribute Cash Cards to Medicare Beneficiaries “A Political Ploy to Curry Favor With Seniors.” “President Trump on Thursday pledged to send $200 prescription drug coupons to 33 million Medicare beneficiaries ‘in the coming weeks,’ a political ploy to curry favor with seniors who view drug prices as a priority. Trump’s promise comes less than six weeks before Election Day, and represents the latest step in his administration’s (and his campaign’s) efforts to amass health care talking points, even if their actions do little to save Americans money… It is unclear whether Trump’s promises on $200 credits for prescription drug coupons will come to fruition. Under the Constitution, it is Congress, not the White House, that is empowered to spend taxpayer money, and it is unclear where the roughly $6.6 billion for the program would come from.” [Stat, 9/24/20] 

Bloomberg: “Trump Didn’t Explain In His Speech What Program or Authority Would Allow the Government to Provide the Cards.” “Trump didn’t explain in his speech what program or authority would allow the government to provide the cards. Assuming they are sent to 33 million Medicare beneficiaries, the figure Trump used, the cards would cost about $6.6 billion…Trump is struggling to secure the votes of older Americans with less than six weeks before the election. Several recent polls indicate his re-election opponent, former Vice President Joe Biden, is tied or leading Trump among people 65 and older, a turnabout from 2016 when the president won the senior vote by a comfortable margin.” [Bloomberg, 9/24/20]

Washington Post: “The White House Has Released No Details of How the $200 Program Would Work, How It Would Be Funded and Whether This Was A Long-Term Plan or One-Time Payment to Seniors Ahead of the Election.” “In addition to the executive action on preexisting conditions, Trump also promised millions of older Americans would receive $200 toward the cost of prescription drugs and signed executive orders he said would somehow prevent unexpected medical bills and protect insurance coverage for preexisting medical problems. The White House released no details of how the $200 program would work, how it would be funded and whether this was a long-term plan or one-time payment to seniors ahead of the election.” [Washington Post, 9/24/20] 

Politico: “The Trump Administration Has Pledged Repeatedly to Lower Drug Costs, Yet Drug Makers Have Raised the Price of Hundreds Of Medicines Amid the Coronavirus Pandemic.” “Sending coupons to that many Medicare beneficiaries would cost at least $6.6 billion. Two senior White House staff said the money can be used as part of a Medicare program, called the 402 demonstration, that tests innovations that could save money or improve the quality of care in Medicare. The Trump administration has pledged repeatedly to lower drug costs, yet drug makers have raised the price of hundreds of medicines amid the coronavirus pandemic.” [Politico, 9/24/20] 

Tonight, President Trump unveiled a series of executive orders in a failed effort to rewrite his disastrous record on protections for people with pre-existing conditions, when, in reality, he has eroded these protections throughout his presidency. In fact, President Trump is in court right now trying to take away the protections that people with pre-existing conditions rely on. The Supreme Court will hear oral arguments in California v. Texas, Trump’s lawsuit to overturn the Affordable Care Act, one week after the election. If successful, Trump’s lawsuit is poised to rip health care away from 23 million Americans, erase protections for pre-existing conditions for 135 million Americans and throw our entire health care system into chaos. 

Reporters were quick to call out Trump’s fantastical lies about the new executive orders:

Daniel Dale (CNN): “Facts: – Obamacare created the protections for pre-existing conditions…Trump has backed GOP bills to weaken them…Trump admin has argued in court that the protections are unconstitutional…Admin is now trying to get Obamacare killed in court…An order can’t replace law.” [Daniel Dale Twitter, 9/24/20]

Paul McLeod (BuzzFeed News): “In a surreal call, the Trump White House just laid out a plan to decree “policy of the United States” that people with pre-existing conditions can get insurance…As best I can tell this has no legal meaning. The Trump admin is suing to repeal pre-existing condition protections.” [Paul McLeod Twitter, 9/24/20]

John Harwood (CNN): “in case anyone’s wondering, Trump’s “executive order” on pre-existing conditions a) means nothing b) does nothing.” [John Harwood Twitter, 9/24/20]

Sam Stein (The Daily Beast): “In other words, the big health care plan that Trump has been saying is two weeks away for several months now is a statement of poll tested priorities that either are current law that he’s trying to erase or toothless unless done through legislation.” [Sam Stein Twitter, 9/24/20]

Julie Rovner (Kaiser Health News): “The President’s coming EO on pre-existing conditions will simply state that it is the policy of the U.S. that people with pre-existing conditions will be protected, even if ACA is overturned. That’s NOT the way this works. This. Requires. Legislation.” [Julie Rovner Twitter, 9/24/20]

Jeffrey Young (HuffPost): “It will surprise no one that Trump is two minutes into this health care speech and roughly 95% of what he’s said is bullshit.” [Jeffrey Young Twitter, 9/24/20]

Binyamin Appelbaum (New York Times): “Issuing an executive order that says preexisting conditions are covered as a substitute for actually covering preexisting conditions is absolute peak Trump.” [Binyamin Appelbaum Twitter, 9/24/20]

Kyle Griffin (MSNBC): “Several tweets (1) misrepresent what Trump’s orders can do or (2) parrot Trump lies without fact-checking them. Trump’s executive order does not have the weight of law. Obamacare protects pre-existing conditions. Trump’s admin is in court fighting to repeal Obamacare. That’s it.” [Kyle Griffin Twitter, 9/24/20]

Andrew Solender (Forbes): “‘The new Democrat lie is that they would cover pre-existing conditions,’ Trump says, despite the fact that the current protections for pre-existing conditions were signed into law by a Democrat.” [Andrew Solender Twitter, 9/24/20]

Yamiche Alcindor (PBS): “Pres Trump: I am signing the first-ever executive order to affirm that it is the ‘official policy of the United States Government to protect patients with pre-existing conditions.’ Fact: The Affordable Care Act signed by Pres Obama made covering pre-existing conditions U.S. law.” [Yamiche Alcindor Twitter, 9/24/20]

Will Steakin (ABC News): “Trump makes dizzying claim that it’s a ‘new Democrats lie’ that ‘they will cover pre-existing conditions,’ despite pre-existing conditions being covered RIGHT NOW because of Obamacare.” [Will Steakin Twitter, 9/24/20]

Washington, DC — Today in Charlotte, North Carolina, President Trump plans to unveil a series of executive orders that he thinks will be health care “wins” for his administration and campaign ahead of Election Day. Trump is specifically trying to rewrite his disastrous record on pre-existing conditions, when, in reality, he has eroded these protections “at every turn.” These executive orders come as his lawsuit to overturn the Affordable Care Act is poised to rip health care away from 23 million Americans, erase protections for pre-existing conditions for 135 million Americans and throw our entire health care system into chaos. Protect Our Care Executive Director Brad Woodhouse issued the following statement in response:

“President Trump’s latest do-nothing executive orders are just another attempt to hide his disastrous record on health care ahead of the most important health care election in American history. While 135 million Americans with pre-existing conditions are currently protected by the Affordable Care Act, President Trump has done everything in his power to terminate those protections and one week after the election, the Supreme Court will hear oral arguments in his lawsuit to fully destroy the health care law. These executive orders will be seen for what they truly are — another Trump scam that won’t lower drug prices, won’t protect Americans with pre-existing conditions and won’t deliver on any of his health care promises.”

COVERAGE:

Washington Post: Trump Looks for Ways to Win Over Voters on Health Care After Failing to Deliver on Promises. “President Trump is pushing advisers to deliver health-care ‘wins’ in the final weeks of the campaign, leading to a frenzied rollout of proposals as polls show the president’s handling of the coronavirus pandemic and health-care policy are two of his biggest vulnerabilities in his reelection bid… Despite making lowering drug prices and repealing and replacing the Affordable Care Act key planks of his 2016 election bid, Trump has struggled to deliver on many of his health-care promises in his first term. He trails Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden in polls on health-care issues.” [Washington Post, 9/23/20] 

• Washington Post: “Experts Have Said Such An Executive Order Would Amount to Little More Than A Public Relations Ploy.” “Experts have said such an executive order would amount to little more than a public relations ploy, and the order is not viewed as a substantive policy proposal among many West Wing advisers.” [Washington Post, 9/23/20] 

New York Times: Trump Says He Will ‘Always’ Protect Those with Pre-Existing Conditions. He Hasn’t. “This provision has long been one of the Affordable Care Act’s most popular features. Even when a majority of Americans disliked the law over all, most supported this part of it. Over time, as Obamacare has become more popular and more embattled, pre-existing-condition protections have become so popular that any politician who declines to support them is likely to pay a political price. In 2018, Democrats retook control of the House of Representatives, after campaigning heavily on pre-existing conditions as an issue…That popularity probably explains why President Trump keeps repeating the words ‘pre-existing conditions.’ But saying that he will support these rules doesn’t make it true.” [New York Times, 9/24/20] 

• New York Times: “Rather Than Enshrine the Ability of Americans with Health Problems to Buy Insurance, the Trump Administration Has, at Every Turn, Pursued Policies That Have Tended to Do the Opposite.” “But rather than enshrine the ability of Americans with health problems to buy insurance, the Trump administration has, at every turn, pursued policies that have tended to do the opposite. Some of the efforts to weaken protections have been successful — like an expansion of cheap, lightly regulated health plans that insurers are not required to offer when customers are sick. Others, like multiple attempts to ‘repeal and replace Obamacare’ in 2017, failed to attract enough Republican votes in Congress to pass. The Justice Department’s quest to overturn the Affordable Care Act, while no replacement is being offered, is still underway, with oral arguments scheduled at the Supreme Court in November.” [New York Times, 9/24/20] 

Bloomberg: “Experts Say That Trump’s Order on Pre-Existing Conditions Won’t Provide Meaningful Protections to Sick People Who Seek Health Insurance.” “What’s not expected: The president’s long-promised comprehensive replacement plan for Obamacare, which his administration is trying to persuade the Supreme Court to strike down. And experts say that Trump’s order on pre-existing conditions won’t provide meaningful protections to sick people who seek health insurance.” [Bloomberg, 9/24/20] 

Politico: “The Executive Actions Are Likely to Have Limited Reach and Impact Before the Election.” “The executive actions are likely to have limited reach and impact before the election, industry observers said. A series of drug pricing orders Trump released in the past two months, including one that would link Medicare prices to cheaper ones paid overseas, largely tee up a federal rulemaking process that would take months, if not years, to come into force.” [Politico, 9/22/20] 

Politico: Previous Republican Health Plans “Fell Short of Obamacare’s Robust Guarantees.” “Trump and Republicans have regularly promised to safeguard insurance protections, but they have failed to agree on a health plan three years after congressional efforts to repeal Obamacare fell apart. Previous Republican health plans have included some language around preexisting conditions, but they fell short of Obamacare’s robust guarantees.” [Politico, 9/22/20]

Digital Ad Campaign Running in Eight States Now Targets Senators Dan Sullivan (R-AK), David Perdue (R-GA), Steve Daines (R-MT), Lindsey Graham (R-SC) and John Cornyn (R-TX) in Addition to Cory Gardner (R-CO), Joni Ernst (R-IA) and Thom Tillis (R-NC) to Remind Americans What’s at Stake in the Upcoming Election

Washington, DC — Today, Protect Our Care released new digital ads highlighting the complicity of Senators Dan Sullivan (R-AK), David Perdue (R-GA), Steve Daines (R-MT), Lindsey Graham (R-SC) and John Cornyn (R-TX) in Donald Trump’s lawsuit to eliminate the Affordable Care Act in the middle of a pandemic by jamming an anti-ACA justice on the court before Election Day. On November 10, 2020 — one week after the election — the U.S. Supreme Court will hear oral arguments in California v. Texas, a case that could eliminate protections for 135 million people with pre-existing conditions and rip away health insurance from over 23 million Americans. The ads call on these senators to let the next president pick the next Supreme Court justice.

The new ads expand a paid digital campaign initially focused on Senators Cory Gardner (R-CO), Joni Ernst (R-IA) and Thom Tillis (R-NC). Protect Our Care plans to expand the campaign to television at a later date.

Watch Your Health Care Is On The Line: Alaska, Georgia, Montana, South Carolina and Texas

“One week after Election Day, Donald Trump will ask the Supreme Court to eliminate the entire Affordable Care Act and Senate Republicans are hell bent on helping him by rushing the confirmation of an anti-health care justice,” said Protect Our Care Chair Leslie Dach. “At a time when millions go to bed worrying if they or a loved one will get sick, are anxious about sending their children to school, and are wondering how they’ll make ends meet, this reckless agenda is unconscionable. Americans overwhelmingly oppose Senate Republicans’ push to rip health care from 23 million Americans and end protections for 135 million people with pre-existing conditions in the middle of a pandemic. Donald Trump and his Republican allies have been trying to destroy our health care for years now and with the national spotlight fully on the Supreme Court, they can’t hide behind their lies anymore.” 

Script for Your Health Care Is On The Line

The next Supreme Court justice will decide whether 135 million Americans lose protections for pre-existing conditions and over 20 million people lose their health care. 

The winner of the presidential election should pick the next justice — but Lindsey Graham disagrees.

He wants to rush a justice onto the court who will repeal our health care.

Call Senator Lindsey Graham and tell him that the next president should pick the next Supreme Court justice. 

Your health care is on the line.

With national attention trained on the Supreme Court vacancy, it is clear that the fight for Americans’ health care has never been more urgent. On November 10, 2020 — one week after the election — the U.S. Supreme Court will hear oral arguments in California v. Texas, a case that could overturn the entire Affordable Care Act, including protections for 135 million Americans with pre-existing conditions and throw our entire health care system into chaos. Coverage shows health care is on the ballot in November, and the choice between Donald Trump and Joe Biden couldn’t be more stark.

Roll Call: Supreme Court Fight Underscores Campaign Trail Focus on Health Care. “In a campaign in which health care was already a top issue for voters, the death of Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg raised the risks for the law signed by President Barack Obama that expanded insurance coverage to more than 20 million people. The Trump administration is arguing that the justices should strike down all of the law, including its popular protections allowing young adults to stay on their parents’ insurance and requiring coverage of preexisting medical conditions. The Supreme Court has not said when it would rule on the lawsuit after the Nov. 10 arguments. Democrats are highlighting the upcoming threat, with party leaders drawing a straight line from the health care law to the COVID-19 pandemic to the Supreme Court. Former Vice President Joe Biden is raising the specter of COVID-19 creating preexisting conditions for the millions of Americans who have had it or could become infected.” [Roll Call, 9/23/20] 

Politico: Pandemic Supercharges Campaign Battles Over Obamacare. “The message will only intensify in coming weeks, in light of Friday’s death of Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg. Her death leaves the decision in the high-stakes Trump-backed lawsuit to ax the entire ACA in the hands of an evenly-divided court where Chief Justice John Roberts was widely viewed to emerge as the key swing vote…Both the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee and Democratically-aligned outside groups are paying for TV ads focused on health care in nearly all their top targeted districts, especially red-leaning suburbs they’re trying to flip.” [Politico, 9/18/20] 

New York Times: Joe Biden’s Court Vacancy Plan: More Talk of Health Care and the Pandemic. “Now, confronted with a moment that many believe will upend the 2020 election — the death of Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg and the prospect of a bitter Supreme Court confirmation battle — Mr. Biden’s campaign is sticking to what it believes is a winning strategy. Campaign aides said Saturday they would seek to link the court vacancy to the health emergency gripping the country and the future of health care in America…For Democrats, the focus on health care — overlaid by the pandemic — is a rerun of the successful playbook that helped power the party’s takeover of the House of Representatives in 2018 and a fidelity to Mr. Biden’s steadfast promise to defend Obamacare, a pledge that helped him navigate through the 2020 primary.” [New York Times, 9/19/20] 

Associated Press: Biden to Focus on Health Care In Supreme Court Debate. “Joe Biden on Sunday used the sudden Supreme Court vacancy to reinforce his argument that the upcoming election should be a referendum on President Donald Trump’s handling of health care and the coronavirus. The death of Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg jolted the presidential campaign just six weeks before the election and as several states are already voting. Trump has seized on the opportunity to nominate a new justice to motivate his most loyal voters. Biden kept the focus on health care, which has proven to be a winning issue for Democrats during previous elections and could be even more resonant amid the pandemic.” [Associated Press, 9/20/20] 

Axios: Inside Biden’s Supreme Court Strategy. “Joe Biden’s closing argument will shift to a dominant emphasis on health care, turning the looming Supreme Court fight into a referendum on coverage and pre-existing conditions, officials tell Axios. Why it matters: Biden aides believed they were winning when the race was about the coronavirus pandemic. Now they plan to use the Supreme Court opening as a raucous new field for a health care fight, returning to a theme that gave Democrats big midterm wins in 2018.” [Axios, 9/20/20] 

Digital Ad Campaign Targets Senators Cory Gardner (R-CO), Joni Ernst (R-IA) and Thom Tillis (R-NC) and Reminds Voters What’s at Stake in the Upcoming Election

Washington, DC — Today, Protect Our Care released new digital ads highlighting the complicity of Senators Cory Gardner (R-CO), Joni Ernst (R-IA) and Thom Tillis (R-NC) in Donald Trump’s lawsuit to eliminate the Affordable Care Act in the middle of a pandemic by jamming an anti-ACA justice on the court before Election Day. On November 10, 2020 — one week after the election — the U.S. Supreme Court will hear oral arguments in California v. Texas, a case that could rip away protections for 135 million people  with pre-existing conditions and take away health insurance from over 23 million Americans. The ads call on these senators to let the next president pick the next Supreme Court justice.

The new ads will begin as a paid digital campaign in Colorado, Iowa and North Carolina. Protect Our Care plans to add states to the campaign and expand to television at a later date.

Watch: Your Health Care Is On The Line — Colorado, Iowa and North Carolina

“One week after Election Day, Donald Trump will ask the Supreme Court to eliminate the entire Affordable Care Act and Senate Republicans like Cory Gardner, Joni Ernst and Thom Tillis are hellbent on helping him by rushing the confirmation of an anti-health care justice,” said Protect Our Care Chair Leslie Dach. “At a time when millions go to bed worrying if they or a loved one will get sick, are anxious about sending their children to school, and are wondering how they’ll make ends meet, this reckless agenda is unconscionable. Americans overwhelmingly oppose Senate Republicans’ push to rip health care from 23 million Americans and end protections for 135 million people with pre-existing conditions in the middle of a pandemic. Donald Trump and his Republican allies have been trying to destroy our health care for years now and with the national spotlight fully on the Supreme Court, they can’t hide behind their lies any more.” 

Script for Your Health Care Is On The Line

The next Supreme Court justice will decide whether 135 million Americans lose protections for pre-existing conditions and over 20 million people lose their health care. 

The winner of the presidential election should pick the next justice — but Cory Gardner disagrees.

Cory Gardner wants to rush a justice onto the court who will repeal our health care.

Call Senator Cory Gardner and tell him that the next president should pick the next Supreme Court justice. 

Your health care is on the line.

Washington, DC — Today, administration officials indicated President Trump would be unveiling an executive order in the coming days related to protections for people with pre-existing conditions, but it would actually do little to nothing to help Americans. The announcement comes as his lawsuit to overturn the Affordable Care Act is poised to take away protections for pre-existing conditions for 135 million Americans and throw our entire health care system into chaos. In response, Protect Our Care Executive Director Brad Woodhouse issued the following statement: 

“This announcement is just another effort from President Trump to obscure his disastrous record as we approach the most consequential health care election of our lives. Since taking office Donald Trump has taken every opportunity to undercut protections for people with pre-existing conditions and rip health care away from millions of others. People with pre-existing conditions already are covered by the Affordable Care Act. President Trump is suing right now to remove those protections and completely dismantle the entire Affordable Care Act. The Supreme Court will hear oral arguments in the case one week after the election and with the recent vacancy on the court, the ACA has never been in more peril. If successful, this lawsuit would mean 135 million people with pre-existing conditions would lose the protections they rely on for health care coverage.”

Call Audio Available Here

Washington, DC — Today, U.S. Senator Chris Murphy (D-CT) and health care advocate Laura Packard joined Protect Our Care to emphasize what the recent U.S. Supreme Court vacancy has made clear — health care is on the ballot in 2020. On November 10, 2020 — one week after the election — the U.S. Supreme Court will hear oral arguments in California v. Texas, a case that could overturn the entire Affordable Care Act, including its protections for 135 million Americans with pre-existing conditions and throw our entire health care system into chaos. It could not be more clear that 2020 is a health care election. 

“Donald Trump has been clear. He is only going to put people on the court who are going to overturn the Affordable Care Act. Republicans are rushing through this nominee, declaring their support before they even know who it is, because they want to make sure that they have a majority decision on that November case to overturn the entirety of the Affordable Care Act. The consequences are absolutely catastrophic for American families if a right-wing justice gets appointed to this court, and Donald Trump and Republicans finally get what they want, which is the elimination of protections for people with pre-existing conditions and the elimination of health care insurance for 25 million Americans,” said U.S. Senator Chris Murphy.

“President Trump repeatedly claims to protect or ‘save’ pre-existing condition protections while simultaneously attacking the Affordable Care Act and any mechanism to ensure people have comprehensive affordable coverage,” said cancer survivor Laura Packard. “People with pre-existing conditions like me are terrified of losing our insurance again in the midst of the pandemic surrounding us. Many of us are uninsurable without the ACA, and without insurance we will die.”

“Right now, Donald Trump is asking the Supreme Court to completely dismantle the ACA — in the middle of a pandemic,” said Protect Our Care Executive Director Brad Woodhouse. “Ripping health care from more than 23 million Americans and ending protections for more than 135 million people with pre-existing conditions is extremely unpopular but now, with the spotlight on the Supreme Court, Trump won’t be able to hide his health care sabotage record from voters. Make no mistake: 2020 is a health care election.”