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Side-By-Side: JD Vance and Governor Tim Walz on Health Care

The Biden-Harris Administration’s Accomplishments vs. the MAGA Republican Agenda

Later tonight, Minnesota Governor Tim Walz and Donald Trump’s running mate JD Vance will take the stage at the Vice Presidential debate of the 2024 election in New York City.

From day one, the Biden-Harris administration has fought tooth and nail to lower costs and make affordable health care a reality for seniors and families across the nation. Vice President Harris has fought to expand affordable coverage, lower prescription drug costs, strengthen Medicaid for moms and kids, and reduce inequities in care. On the other hand, Donald Trump and JD Vance have vowed to repeal the ACA and Inflation Reduction Act, slash Medicaid and Medicare funding, take away protections for people with pre-existing conditions, and raise prescription drug and premium costs. Under the MAGA agenda, millions of Americans will lose coverage and costs will skyrocket. The contrast could not be more clear:

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TODAY: Hours Before VP Debate, Congressman Pocan to Highlight MAGA Republican Threats to Affordable, Accessible Health Care for Wisconsinites

***MEDIA ADVISORY FOR TUESDAY, OCTOBER 1 @ 2:30PM CT / 3:30 PM ET***

WISCONSIN – On Tuesday, October 1 at 2:30 PM CT / 3:30 PM ET, U.S. Representative Mark Pocan (D-WI-02) will join Protect Our Care Wisconsin and state healthcare advocates to highlight Donald Trump and JD Vances’ threats to health care and their efforts to eliminate and rollback policies championed by the Biden-Harris administration and congressional Democrats that have lowered prescription drug costs and increased access to quality, affordable health care. 

Trump has repeatedly vowed to repeal the Affordable Care Act and the Inflation Reduction Act, which have strengthened health care and lowered costs. Project 2025, the dangerous GOP plan for a second Trump presidency, promises to slash funding for Medicare and Medicaid, expand junk health insurance plans, ban Medicare from negotiating for lower drug prices, and strip away remaining reproductive rights. If Trump and his MAGA allies in Congress get their way, Wisconsinites risk losing their coverage, facing higher premiums, or both; and seniors on Medicare will have to pay more for life saving medications. 

The Biden-Harris administration has fought tirelessly to protect and expand health care benefits for Wisconsinites. Recently, they announced a $500 million investment into ACA navigators, which comes after a record 21.3 million people nationwide signed up for coverage under ACA marketplaces in 2023, including more than 260,000 Wisconsinites. Thanks to the Inflation Reduction Act, seniors are saving on their prescription drug costs, as insulin prices are capped at $35 per month, Medicare is negotiating for lower drug prices, and out-of-pocket costs will be capped at $2000 per month starting in 2025. While Trump and his MAGA allies wage war on American health care, the Biden-Harris administration continues to prioritize the health and well-being of every American.

WHO:
U.S. Representative Mark Pocan (D-WI-02)
UW-Madison Student Ami P.
Dr. Ken Valyo
tbd

WHAT: Virtual Press Conference

WHEN: Tuesday, October 1 at 2:30 PM CT / 3:30 PM ET

WHERE: Register to join the Zoom event (Registration required)

###

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ROUNDUP: JD Vance Announces MAGA Plan to Rip Away Protections For Hundreds of Millions of Americans With Pre-Existing Conditions

JD Vance is an existential threat to our health care. In recent weeks, he has been making headlines for his attacks on the Affordable Care Act (ACA) and its protections for more than 100 million people with pre-existing conditions. Last week, Vance told reporters he wanted to implement a “deregulatory agenda” for health care, declaring, “[T]he best way to do that is to…not have a one-size-fits-all approach that puts a lot of people into the same insurance pools, into the same risk pools.” Translation: he wants to put insurance companies back in charge and give them the power to charge more or deny coverage for people with common conditions like asthma, cancer, and diabetes. 

Trump is fully supportive of Vance’s latest comments attacking people with pre-existing conditions. Earlier this week, a spokesperson for the Trump campaign confirmed that “the president and Vance [are] broadly aligned on health care policy.” At the same time, Trump and Vance are trying to cover their tracks. Recognizing just how unpopular the MAGA health care agenda is across the nation, Vance falsely claimed Donald Trump “chose to build upon” the Affordable Care Act – despite Trump’s top policy priority being a full repeal and replacement of the law. The bottom line is that Trump and Vance will stop at nothing to repeal and sabotage the ACA, hike costs for middle-class families, rip away protections for people with pre-existing conditions, and throw millions of people off their coverage. 

HEADLINES

KFF Health News: Vance Rewrites History About Trump and Obamacare.

  • “Sen. JD Vance (R-Ohio) on Sept. 15 told viewers of NBC’s ‘Meet the Press’ that former President Donald Trump built up the Affordable Care Act, even though Trump could have chosen to do the opposite. […] The remarks follow statements the former president made during his Sept. 10 debate with Vice President Kamala Harris in Philadelphia. Trump said of the ACA, ‘I saved it.’” 
  • “Both Vance’s and Trump’s statements are false. We contacted Vance’s campaign; it provided no additional information. But here’s a review of policies related to Obamacare that Trump pursued as president. Most of the Trump administration’s ACA-related actions involved cutting the program, including reducing by millions of dollars funding for marketing and enrollment assistance and backing the many failed efforts in Congress and the courts to overturn the law. In June 2020, for example, the administration asked the Supreme Court to overturn the law in a case brought by more than a dozen GOP states. The high court eventually rejected the case.”

Georgetown University Center on Health Insurance Reforms: High-Risk Pools: A High Risk Proposition for People with Pre-Existing Conditions.

  • “J.D. Vance, candidate for Vice President of the United States, has recently called for a return to the “high-risk pools” that existed prior to the Affordable Care Act (ACA) for people with pre-existing conditions. Similarly, when Congress debated repealing the ACA in 2017, several members of Congress advanced the idea of replacing the ACA’s insurance reforms with high-risk insurance pools. Unfortunately, high-risk pools didn’t work before the ACA, they wouldn’t have worked in 2017, and they won’t work now.”
  • “But before the ACA, 35 states had high-risk pools. They were basically health insurance ghettos for people with pre-existing conditions – and expensive, poor quality ghettos at that. On the eve of the ACA market reforms, they enrolled 226,615 people, a tiny fraction of those potentially eligible. Here’s why:
    • 1) Coverage was unaffordable. Nearly all of the high-risk pools had to set premiums at higher-than-market rates. Even though the high-risk pools were government-subsidized, those subsidies couldn’t cover the actual costs of this high-need population.
    • 2) Coverage didn’t cover the care needed. To keep costs in check, nearly all the high-risk pools imposed pre-existing condition exclusions, meaning that even if you could afford the premiums, the insurer could refuse to cover any costs for your pre-existing condition for as many as 12 months.
    • 3) Coverage was limited. All but two of the pools imposed lifetime dollar limits on coverage, usually between $1-2 million. Others imposed annual dollar limits on coverage, or limits on specific items or services, such a prescription drugs or rehabilitative services.
    • 4) High out-of-pocket costs. Many of the pools offered plans with high deductibles, requiring people to spend considerable amounts out-of-pocket before coverage kicked in.”

The Washington Post: Vance Floats New Health Plans For Chronically Ill, Reopening ACA Debate.

  • “Sen. JD Vance (R-Ohio) this week said the Trump campaign wants to roll back the Affordable Care Act’s approach to how chronically ill Americans shop for health insurance, with the Republican vice-presidential candidate reopening a health-care debate that Democrats are eager to have — and resurrecting a fight that has repeatedly burned the GOP.
  • “Speaking in North Carolina on Wednesday, Vance floated an idea to group chronically ill patients together in health-insurance pools based on their elevated risks. That would reverse a shift driven by the Affordable Care Act, which largely ended the practice of shunting chronically ill patients into what are known as high-risk pools and provided new protections for patients with preexisting conditions.”

​​New York Magazine: Vance: Trump’s Health-Care Plan Is to Let Insurers Charge More for Preexisting Conditions.

  • “What Vance came up with is not only surprising but, if understood properly, far more damaging than Trump’s original statement. The Trump plan, according to Vance, is to permit insurance companies to discriminate against people with preexisting conditions.”

The New Republic: J.D. Vance Reveals Atrocious Little Detail of Trump’s Health Care Plan.

  • “Vance said that under Donald Trump’s plan, Americans wouldn’t be put ‘into the same risk pools.’… But doing so, as Vance suggests, would come at the expense of much higher charges for everyone else—especially older Americans and those with pre-existing conditions. Right now, the law allows insurance companies to bill older people up to three times as much as they do for the young, Vance is talking about making that gap even higher.”

Bloomberg: Vance’s Pitch Puts Obamacare Repeal Efforts Back in the Spotlight.

  • “Democrats are seizing on JD Vance’s pitch to do away with a bedrock part of the Affordable Care Act, saying it would cause costs for chronically ill people to spike.”
  • “At a rally on Wednesday, Vance said a second Trump administration would work to separate people into different risk pool…Such a policy would effectively end the ACA’s guarantee that people pay the same prices and get the same benefits regardless of their health status, a popular part of the program.”

Politico: How JD Vance Reopened The Health Care Fight.

  • “Vance on Meet the Press last Sunday and in Raleigh on Wednesday, outlined a plan to ‘deregulate’ health care while somehow still making sure everyone had coverage, including the tens of millions of Americans with pre-existing conditions.”
  • “‘You also want to implement some deregulatory agenda so that people can choose a health care plan that fits them,’ he said. ‘And we want to make sure everybody is covered.”
  • “‘But the best way to do that is to actually promote some more choice in our health care system and not have a one-size-fits-all approach that puts a lot of people into the same insurance pools, into the same risk pools, that actually makes it harder for people to make the right choices for their families,’ Vance added.”

The Hill: Vance Revives Old GOP Fights On ObamaCare Insurance Coverage.

  • “Republican vice presidential nominee Sen. JD Vance (R-Ohio) on Sunday floated an idea that would turn back the clock on covering people with preexisting conditions, relitigating a position that was a hallmark of GOP proposals to replace ObamaCare during Donald Trump’s presidency.”
  • “In an interview on NBC’s ‘Meet the Press,’ Vance said Trump’s health plan would ‘promote choice’ in the health system by separating sicker people into different health insurance coverage pools from the healthier populations.”

The 19th: Health Plan Floated By JD Vance Could Weaken Protections For Pregnant People.

  • “A health care proposal suggested by Republican vice presidential candidate JD Vance could gut a popular Affordable Care Act protection, making it legal for companies to charge more for or deny coverage of expensive medical conditions, including pregnancy.”
  • “Speaking at a Wednesday event in North Carolina, Vance said that if elected, former President Donald Trump would change health insurance regulations so that people who are healthier and use their insurance less can have cheaper coverage, while those with chronic conditions or who use health care more would have different insurance.”

Vox: Trump’s Health Care Plan Exposes The Truth About His ‘Populism’.

  • “On that program, NBC’s Kristen Welker asked Vance to explain what — if anything — Trump planned to change about America’s health care system. […] [T]he one concrete policy Vance did detail would actually involve making health care coverage less affordable for those with chronic illnesses.”

Semafor: JD Vance Reopens The Pre-Existing Condition Debates.

  • “Vance’s comments in the same interview appeared to reference policy ideas advanced by Trump during his presidency that would have significantly changed, pared back, or eliminated aspects of the law’s protections for people with pre-existing conditions. […] He also criticized the law for putting people into ‘the same risk pools’ with a ‘one-size-fits-all approach’ — a seeming reference to prior Republican proposals to offer insurance to people with expensive conditions in separate ‘high risk pools’ rather than require insurers to cover everyone together under similar plans.”

HuffPost: The GOP’s Obamacare Agenda Just Reemerged From Hiding. 

  • “Vance was careful to say he and Trump would “make sure everybody is covered,” just as Trump has promised before. But the actual plans Republicans put forward during the 2017 repeal fight would have caused the number of Americans without insurance to rise by millions or even tens of millions, partly because they did not protect people with pre-existing conditions, partly because they simultaneously proposed to slash funding for Medicaid, the program the insures low-income Americans.”

STAT: Vance’s Confusing Health Insurance Remarks Give Democrats A New Attack Line. 

  • “The Ohio senator obliged. In describing Trump’s health care plan, he started off by saying ‘you want to make sure that pre-existing coverage — conditions — are covered.’ Then he said people should be sorted into risk pools, instead of a ‘one-size-fits-all approach that puts a lot of people into the same insurance pools.’”

Allbritton Journalism Institute: The Ghost of Obamacare Repeal Haunts the GOP.

  • “JD Vance has endorsed an old policy that would strip protections for people with preexisting conditions — and many Republicans in Congress, having been through this fight before, are sprinting away from the idea.”
  • “With Vance’s suggestion that Republicans turn to “high-risk pools” — which, prior to the passage of the Affordable Care Act in 2010, separated very sick people into a more expensive insurance market — he revived a fiercely contested debate that his Senate GOP colleagues seem to still have nightmares about.”

The Washington Post (Opinion): Trump’s ‘Concepts Of A Plan’ Would Destroy The Health-Care System.

  • “Vance is referring to letting insurance companies offer different plans and pricing based on whether patients have preexisting conditions or might need more medical care because of their age, health status, gender, etc., or perhaps even their genetic profile. Rather than spreading the insurance risk around to a larger group of people who to some extent cross-subsidize one another, Vance wants to segment riskier patients into their own ‘pools.’ Sicker, higher-risk, more expensive people can ‘choose’ to go into one pool; healthier, less risky, cheaper-to-insure people can ‘choose’ to land in another.”
  • “Allowing insurers to discriminate based on age or preexisting conditions has long been politically unpopular. But politics aside, the bigger problem with this design is that it would probably cause insurance markets to implode.”

The New York Times (Opinion): Trump Learned Nothing From the Obamacare Debate. Neither Did Vance.

  • “[T]he other day JD Vance, his running mate, gave us a bit more insight into those concepts — concepts that, if implemented, would have the effect of denying health care to millions of Americans, particularly those who need it most. On Sept. 15 on ‘Meet the Press,’ Vance — after noting that people in good health have very different needs from those with chronic conditions — called for deregulation, saying that we should ‘promote some more choice in our health care system and not have a one-size-fits-all approach that puts a lot of people into the same insurance pools, into the same risk pools.’”
  • “To my ear, however, these remarks by Vance — who is closely associated with the Heritage Foundation’s president, Kevin Roberts, one of the architects of Project 2025 — sounded similar to this airy statement in the Project 2025 manifesto…”
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HEADLINES: Harris Campaign Puts Trump’s Dangerous Health Care Plan on Full Display

The Report Highlights Four Main Concepts of The Trump Plan: Rip Away Health Insurance, Raise Costs of Prescription Drugs, Cut Medicare and Medicaid, and Ban Abortion Nationwide.

Over the weekend, the Harris-Walz campaign released a report on Donald Trump and JD Vance’s “concept” of a health care plan and how, if elected, Trump and Vance will rip away health care for millions and raise costs on the rest. The report states, “They have a concept of a plan, and their concept is this: You’re on your own.” 

Recently, Vance admitted that Trump’s plan would turn back the clocks by putting people in high-risk pools – meaning he wants to give insurance companies the power to charge people with pre-existing conditions more for coverage. No matter how many times Trump and Vance claim they will make the Affordable Care Act “better,” their agenda speaks for itself. Under Trump’s plan, we would return to the days when people with conditions like asthma, cancer, and diabetes could be left uninsurable and unable to access lifesaving care. Insurance companies would be put back in charge and have the power to do whatever they want such as charge people more for insurance or deny coverage altogether.

HEADLINES

HuffPost: Harris Campaign Releases Report On What Donald Trump Could Do To Obamacare. “The point of Monday’s paper from the Harris campaign is to remind people that Trump tried to repeal before ― and could try it again ― threatening health care access for the tens of millions who now depend on the Affordable Care Act… In addition to tallying up the number of people who could lose insurance, the report spotlights the number of people with preexisting conditions who could lose the protection of the Affordable Care Act’s insurance rules.” [Huffpost, 9/30/24]

The Hill: Harris Blasts Trump’s ‘Concepts Of A Plan’ For Health Care In Run-Up To VP Debate. “During the presidential debate between Vice President Harris and former President Trump, moderators pushed Trump on his health care plans and he responded that he ‘had concepts of a plan.’ ‘His plan adds up to this: eliminating health insurance and raising costs for tens of millions of Americans, including those with preexisting conditions, seniors, small business owners, working families, pregnant women, and kids,’ the report adds.” [The Hill, 9/30/24]

The Grio: Harris-Walz Campaign Trolls Trump And Vance, Warns Black Voters On Threats To Health Care. “The Harris-Walz campaign is putting Donald Trump and his running mate, JD Vance, on defense when it comes to their record on health care, a top policy issue after the economy for many Black voters… The Harris-Walz campaign’s ‘report’ compiles policy positions and public pronouncements from Trump and Vance, with the aim of laying out to impacted voters what a second Trump administration would mean for millions of Americans currently insured under a federal plan.” [The Grio, 9/30/24]

The Root: The Harris-Walz Campaign Has Given Its Own Version of Trump’s “Concept of a Plan” For Health Care. “…Trump wants to implement ‘some deregulatory agenda’ that separates Americans into different risk pools… ​​The Harris-Walz campaign’s new report sharply criticizes the approach. They say the Trump-Vance plan has four concepts: ‘rip insurance away from millions, including those with pre-existing conditions;’ ‘raise the costs of prescription drugs and health insurance;’ ‘cut Medicare and slash Medicaid;’ and ‘ban abortion nationwide and rip away reproductive health.’” [The Root, 9/30/24]

Cardinal & Pine: Trump’s Health Care Plan Would Be ‘Catastrophic’ For North Carolinians, A New Harris-Walz Report Says. “During his debate with Kamala Harris last month, Donald Trump said that after nine years of running for president, being president, and running again, he finally had ‘concepts of a plan’ to replace the Affordable Care Act (ACA) and improve healthcare access across the country… Repealing the ACA combined with Trump’s other healthcare ‘concepts,’ the Harris-Walz report says, would strip health insurance from more than 1.5 million North Carolinians, drive up prices for most of the people who keep it, and put people with preexisting conditions at risk of either losing their coverage or paying astronomical premiums.” [Cardinal & Pine, 9/30/24]

WHYY PBS: Harris Campaign Issues Report Detailing How Repealing ACA Would Effect Pennsylvanians. “The Harris for President campaign has just released a report titled “The Trump-Vance ‘Concept’ on Health Care’… 420,000 Pennsylvania residents who currently purchase their health insurance from the state’s health care exchange may see their health care costs rise unless an alternative were put in place… The report also claims that ‘more than 5.2 million people with preexisting conditions in Pennsylvania could be denied health care coverage or charged thousands of dollars more under the Trump-Vance plan for high-risk pools.’” [WHYY PBS, 9/30/24]

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MEMO: Health Care Is Front and Center Heading Into November 

MEMORANDUM
TO: Interested Parties
FROM: Leslie Dach and Brad Woodhouse, Protect Our Care
DATE: September 30, 2024
RE: Health Care Is Front and Center Heading Into November 

Health care is at the center of this election cycle. Whether it’s Kamala Harris campaigning on the administration’s accomplishments over the last four years through advertising and campaign events or Donald Trump and J.D. Vance making headlines for attacking the Affordable Care Act (ACA) and its protections for people with pre-existing conditions, health care is front and center heading into November. 

In this election, voters will once again determine the future of American health care.

In every election since 2018, voters have gone to the polls prioritizing better health care and lower costs — and this year is no different. By passing the Inflation Reduction Act, the Biden-Harris administration and Democrats in Congress won a decades-long battle against big drug companies and lowered health care costs for families across the nation. Kamala Harris and Democrats are working to build on these accomplishments to further lower drug prices, restore abortion access, safeguard Medicare, Medicaid, and the ACA, and ensure that people with pre-existing conditions remain protected. 

Meanwhile, on the debate stage, Trump lied and outlandishly claimed he “saved” the ACA while he was in office, and then said he has a “concept of a plan” to replace the law. At the same time, his VP pick is doubling down on calls to repeal the ACA and its protections for 100 million Americans with pre-existing conditions. Trump and Vance want to conceal their deeply unpopular health care agenda to hike costs for middle-class families while delivering more tax breaks to big drug and insurance companies. 

Harris Campaign Is All-In On Health Care

Kamala has made health care a central part of her campaign. Health care is a kitchen table issue, and the Democratic message on health care receives strong support from a majority of voters, whether they live in red or blue states, or rural, suburban, or urban zip codes. 

Kamala Harris Is Campaigning On Health Care. On the debate stage, Harris declared, “Access to health care should be a right and not just a privilege of those who can afford it, and the plan has to be to strengthen the Affordable Care Act, not get rid of it.” During rallies and events, Harris has repeatedly raised the issue of health care. During a White House policy event in Largo, MD, for example, she told the crowd, “As vice president — together with Joe Biden, our president — we’ve finally addressed the long-standing issue that for years was one of the biggest challenges on this subject, which is that Medicare was prohibited by law from negotiating lower drug prices, and that cost was passed on to our seniors. But not anymore.” During a recent event in Charlotte, NC, she also said, “45 million Americans are insured through the Affordable Care Act, and [Trump]’s going to end it based on a concept and take us back to when insurance companies had the power to deny people with pre-existing conditions. Well, we are not going back.”  The Harris-Walz campaign held 19 events with health care messaging in the week following the debate alone.

Paid Media: Medicare And Prescription Drugs Dominated Recent Democratic Spending In The Presidential Campaign. According to Wesleyan Media Project, between August 26 and September 8, 30.9% of Kamala Harris ads focused on Medicare and nearly 100% of allied group ads sponsored for Climate Power Action, FF PAC, and LCV Victory Fund included prescription drugs as a top issue. The Harris campaign and allied groups combined for over 33,000 airings of ads mentioning Medicare or prescription drugs during this time period.

Trump’s Plans To Repeal the ACA and Gut Protections for Pre-Existing Conditions Are Back in the Spotlight

Headlines across the nation are calling out the Trump campaign for renewing calls to repeal the ACA and gut its protections for over 100 million Americans with pre-existing conditions. At the same time, Trump is lying about his disastrous record on health care. Trump’s “concepts of a plan” moment in the debate is fueling ridicule and voter anxiety around the country.

Trump Is Coming For The Affordable Care Act. Trump was one vote away from total repeal in 2017, and he did everything in his power to sabotage it and throw people off the rolls. As a result, millions of Americans lost coverage and costs went up across the board. Now, he is doubling down on his Project 2025-MAGA plan to repeal the ACA, cut Medicare and Medicaid, hike prescription drug costs, and raise costs on middle-class families. 

Vance Has Renewed Calls To Eliminate Protections For Pre-Existing Conditions. In the last few weeks, J.D. Vance has repeatedly called for gutting protection for people with pre-existing conditions. His latest comments about separating insurance pools would raise costs on over 100 million people with conditions like asthma, cancer, and diabetes. Insurance companies would be back in charge and given the power to lock millions of people out of affordable coverage options.

Trump Wants To Take Credit For Inflation Reduction Act Savings (While Trying To Repeal It). Despite allowing drug companies to charge whatever they want, he is trying to take credit for the Inflation Reduction Act’s insulin cap. In reality, the MAGA agenda would repeal the Inflation Reduction Act in its entirety, putting drug companies back in charge, stopping Medicare from negotiating lower drug prices, and hiking insulin costs for seniors. 

Additional Resources

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THIS WEEK: “Lower Cost, Better Care” Bus Tour Rolls Into Pennsylvania, New York, and New Hampshire

U.S. Senator Bob Casey (D-PA) and U.S. Reps. Susan Wild (D-PA-07), Pat Ryan (D-NY-18), Matt Cartwright (D-PA-08), Chris Pappas (D-NH-01), and Paul Tonko (D-NY-20) Will Headline “Lower Costs, Better Care” Events in 3 States

Watch All Bus Tour Stops Live Here.

Washington, D.C. — On the second week of Protect Our Care’s 12,000-mile “Lower Costs, Better Care” bus tour, “Care Force One” will make stops in 3 states to make sure everyone understands how the Biden-Harris administration and Democrats in Congress worked to lower health care costs for Americans. By passing the Inflation Reduction Act, they provided relief to those who purchase insurance on their own, capped the monthly cost of insulin, and gave Medicare the power to negotiate drug prices. At the same time, Donald Trump and MAGA Republicans are fighting a war on our health care system to raise costs and deny coverage for pre-existing conditions, leaving millions of people without critical coverage. MAGA Republicans want us to go back to the days when insurance companies made the rules and could deny people coverage. During each stop, national and local elected officials, health care advocates, and storytellers are sounding the alarm about the threat Donald Trump and MAGA Republicans pose to American health care and celebrating the historic steps the Biden-Harris administration has taken to provide working families the quality, affordable care they need to stay healthy. Over six weeks, Care Force One will travel to more than 17 states, make more than 50 stops, and travel nearly 12,000 miles.

MONDAY

HUDSON VALLEY, NEW YORK:
WHO:
U.S. Representative Pat Ryan (D-NY-18)
Laura Packard, cancer survivor and health care advocate

WHERE: Academy Green Park, 238 Clinton Ave, Kingston, NY

WHEN: Monday, September 30, 2024 at 9 AM ET

LONG ISLAND, NEW YORK:
WHO:
Assembly Member Michaelle Solages
Assemblymember Taylor Darling
Laura Packard, cancer survivor and health care advocate

WHERE: Kennedy Park, 335 Greenwich St, Hempstead, NY 11550

WHEN: Monday, September 30, 2024 at 1 PM ET

TUESDAY

PHILADELPHIA, PENNSYLVANIA:
WHO:
Laura Packard, cancer survivor and health care advocate 

WHERE: TBA

WHEN: Tuesday, October 1, 2024 at TBA

WEDNESDAY

MANCHESTER, NEW HAMPSHIRE:
WHO:
U.S. Representative Chris Pappas (D-NH-01)
Laura Packard, cancer survivor and health care advocate 

WHERE: TBA

WHEN: Wednesday, October 2, 2024 at 11:30 AM ET

PORTSMOUTH, NEW HAMPSHIRE:

WHO:
Laura Packard, cancer survivor and health care advocate 

WHERE: Love Mural / Prescott Park, 10 State Street, Portsmouth, New Hampshire

WHEN: Wednesday, October 2, 2024 at TBA

THURSDAY

RENSSELAER COUNTY, NEW YORK:
WHO:
Assemblymember Patricia Fahy
Laura Packard, cancer survivor and health care advocate 

WHERE: TBA

WHEN: Thursday, October 3, 2024 at TBA

UTICA, NEW YORK:
WHO:
U.S. Representative Paul Tonko (D-NY-20)
State Senator John Mannion
Laura Packard, cancer survivor and health care advocate 

WHERE: Character Coffee, 171 Genesee St., Utica, New York

WHEN: Thursday, October 3, 2024 at TBA

FRIDAY

HARRISBURG, PENNSYLVANIA:
WHO:
U.S. Senator Bob Casey (D-PA)
Laura Packard, cancer survivor and health care advocate

WHERE: State Capitol, 501 N 3rd St, Harrisburg, PA

WHEN: Friday, October 4, 2024 at TBA

WILKES-BARRE, PENNSYLVANIA: 

WHO:
U.S. Representative Matt Cartwright (D-PA-08)
Laura Packard, cancer survivor and health care advocate 

WHERE: TBA

WHEN: Tuesday, October 1, 2024 at TBA

CONCLUDED

ALLENTOWN, PENNSYLVANIA:

WHO:
U.S. Representative Susan Wild (D-PA-07)
Paul Anthony
Laura Packard, cancer survivor and health care advocate

WHERE: Watch the event here

Protect Our Care’s Care Force One will make stops in:

Duluth, Minnesota on Monday, September 23, 2024
St. Paul, Minnesota on Monday, September 23, 2024
Madison, Wisconsin on Tuesday, September 24, 2024
Milwaukee, Wisconsin on Tuesday, September 24, 2024
Lansing, Michigan on Wednesday, September 25, 2024
Grand Rapids, Michigan on Wednesday, September 25, 2024
Toledo, Ohio on Thursday, September 26, 2024
Youngstown, Ohio on Thursday, September 26, 2024
Greensburg, Pennsylvania on Friday, September 27, 2024
Allentown, Pennsylvania on Sunday, September 29, 2024
Hudson Valley, New York on Monday, September 30, 2024
Long Island, New York on Monday, September 30, 2024
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania on Tuesday, October 1, 2024
Manchester, New Hampshire on Wednesday, October 2, 2024
Portsmouth, New Hampshire on Wednesday, October 2, 2024
Rensselaer County, New York on Thursday, October 3, 2024
Utica, New York on Thursday, October 3, 2024
Harrisburg, Pennsylvania on Friday, October 4, 2024
Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania on Tuesday, October 1, 2024
Richmond, Virginia on Monday, October 7, 2024
Harrisonburg, Virginia on Monday, October 7, 2024
Durham, North Carolina on Tuesday, October 8, 2024
Charlotte, North Carolina on Tuesday, October 8, 2024
Asheville, North Carolina on Wednesday, October 9, 2024
Dalton, Georgia on Wednesday, October 9, 2024
Augusta, Georgia on Thursday, October 10, 2024
Savannah, Georgia on Thursday, October 10, 2024
Orlando, Florida on Friday, October 11, 2024
Tampa, Florida on Friday, October 11, 2024
Albuquerque, New Mexico on Tuesday, October 15, 2024
Las Cruces, New Mexico on Tuesday, October 15, 2024
Tucson, Arizona on Wednesday, October 16, 2024
Phoenix, Arizona on Wednesday, October 16, 2024
Tempe, Arizona on Thursday, October 17, 2024
Palm Springs, California on Thursday, October 17, 2024
Orange County, California on Friday, October 18, 2024
Santa Clarita, California on Monday, October 21, 2024
Bakersfield, California on Monday, October 21, 2024
Reno, Nevada on Tuesday, October 22, 2024
Las Vegas, Nevada on Wednesday, October 23, 2024
Grand Junction, Colorado on Thursday, October 24, 2024
Denver, Colorado on Friday, October 25, 2024
Burnsville, Minnesota on Monday, October 28, 2024
Rochester, Minnesota on Monday, October 28, 2024
La Crosse, Wisconsin on Tuesday, October 29, 2024
Madison, Wisconsin on Tuesday, October 29, 2024
Detroit, Michigan on Wednesday, October 30, 2024
Wayne, Michigan on Wednesday, October 30, 2024
Cincinnati, Ohio on Thursday, October 31, 2024
Cleveland, Ohio on Thursday, October 31, 2024
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania on Friday, November 1, 2024

For more information on Protect Our Care’s “Lower Cost, Better Care” tour, click here. 

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Week One: Protect Our Care’s Care Force One Made Stops in Minnesota, Wisconsin, Michigan, Ohio, and Pennsylvania

Attorneys General Keith Ellison, Josh Kaul, Lieutenant Governors Peggy Flanagan, Austin Davis, State Rep. Penelope Tsernoglou, Mayor Cavalier Johnson, City Council President Carrie Hartman, City Councilmember Mike Ray, Headlined “Lower Costs, Better Care” Bus Tour Events

On the first week of Protect Our Care’s 12,000-mile “Lower Costs, Better Care” bus tour, “Care Force One” made stops in five states to make sure everyone understands how they continue to benefit from legislation like the Inflation Reduction Act and the Affordable Care Act – while also making it clear the stakes for American health care have never been higher. During each stop, national and local elected officials, health care advocates, and storytellers sounded the alarm about the threat Donald Trump and MAGA Republicans pose to American health care. MAGA Republicans want us to go back to the days when insurance companies made the rules and could deny people coverage. As Republicans fight to raise costs on working families, deny coverage for pre-existing conditions, and repeal the Inflation Reduction Act and Affordable Care Act, the Biden-Harris administration continues to improve access to quality and affordable health care. Next week, the tour continues in Pennsylvania, New York, and New Hampshire. Over six weeks, Care Force One will travel to more than 17 states, make more than 50 stops, and travel nearly 12,000 miles.

Watch All Bus Tour Stops Here

DULUTH, MINNESOTA

Protect Our Care’s Care Force One was joined by Attorney General Keith Ellison, and health care advocates at Bayfront Festival Park in Duluth to to highlight how the Biden-Harris administration and Democrats in Congress have delivered on their promise to drive down health care costs and how health care remains under threat by Donald Trump and MAGA Republicans.

Coverage:

Watch the event here.

ST. PAUL, MINNESOTA

Protect Our Care’s Care Force One was joined by Lieutenant Governor Peggy Flanagan, and health care advocates at the Minnesota State Capitol in St. Paul to highlight how the Biden-Harris administration and Democrats in Congress have delivered on their promise to drive down health care costs and how health care remains under threat by Donald Trump and MAGA Republicans. 

Coverage:

  • KMSP-TV (Fox-Minneapolis): Protect Our Care Kicks Off Nationwide Bus Tour Highlighting Inflation Reduction Act
  • KMSP (FOX-Minneapolis): Protect Our Care Bus Tour Kicks off with Advocates Fighting for Families To Pay Affordable Prices For Health Care

Watch the event here.

MADISON, WISCONSIN

Protect Our Care’s Care Force One was joined by Attorney General Josh Kaul, and health care advocates at Madison Labor Temple in Madison to highlight how the Biden-Harris administration and Democrats in Congress have delivered on their promise to drive down health care costs and how health care remains under threat by Donald Trump and MAGA Republicans. 

Coverage:

  • Spectrum News 1 (Wisconsin): Protect Our Care Brings Care Force One to Wisconsin As Part Of Nationwide Bus Tour
  • WISC (CBS): AG Kaul Headlines Healthcare Tour Stop
  • Spectrum News 1: Protect Our Care Bus Tour Coming to Wisconsin Today
  • WKOW (ABC-Madison): AG Kaul Advocates at POC Bus Tour
  • WQOW (ABC-La Crosse): AG Kaul, Health Care Advocates speak at POC Bus Tour Kickoff
  • Wisconsin Examiner: Advocacy groups put health care on the election year agenda
  • APG Media: Advocacy groups put health care on the election year agenda

Watch the event here.

MILWAUKEE, WISCONSIN

Protect Our Care’s Care Force One was joined by Mayor Cavalier Johnson, and health care advocates at Sherman Phoenix in Milwaukee to highlight how the Biden-Harris administration and Democrats in Congress have delivered on their promise to drive down health care costs and how health care remains under threat by Donald Trump and MAGA Republicans. 

Coverage:

  • WisPolitics: “Protect Our Care: “Lower Costs, Better Care” bus tour makes stops in Madison and Milwaukee”

Watch the event here.

LANSING, MICHIGAN

Protect Our Care’s Care Force One was joined by State Representative Penelope Tsernoglou, and health care advocates at the Michigan Dept of Energy in Lansing to highlight how the Biden-Harris administration and Democrats in Congress have delivered on their promise to drive down health care costs and how health care remains under threat by Donald Trump and MAGA Republicans. 

Watch the event here.

GRAND RAPIDS, MICHIGAN

Protect Our Care’s Care Force One was joined by health care advocates at Garfield Park in Grand Rapids to highlight how the Biden-Harris administration and Democrats in Congress have delivered on their promise to drive down health care costs and how health care remains under threat by Donald Trump and MAGA Republicans. 

Watch the event here.

TOLEDO, OHIO

Protect Our Care’s Care Force One was joined by City Council President Carrie Hartman, Lucas County Commissioners Pete Gerken and Lisa Sobecki, and health care advocates at the Lucas County Courthouse in Toledo to highlight how the Biden-Harris administration and Democrats in Congress have delivered on their promise to drive down health care costs and how health care remains under threat by Donald Trump and MAGA Republicans. 

Coverage:

  • The Blade: Local elected officials champion Affordable Care Act, Harris ahead of election

Watch the event here.

YOUNGSTOWN, OHIO

Protect Our Care’s Care Force One was joined by Mayor Jamael Tito Brown, and health care advocates at Covelli Centre in Youngstown to highlight how the Biden-Harris administration and Democrats in Congress have delivered on their promise to drive down health care costs and how health care remains under threat by Donald Trump and MAGA Republicans. 

Coverage:

  • Mahoning Matters: Youngstown Mayor participating in ‘Lower Costs, Better Care’ bus tour stop this week
  • WFMJ: Care Force One rolled through Youngstown

Watch the event here.

GREENSBURG, PENNSYLVANIA

Protect Our Care’s Care Force One was joined by Lieutenant Governor Austin Davis, and health care advocates at Greensburg in Pennsylvania to highlight how the Biden-Harris administration and Democrats in Congress have delivered on their promise to drive down health care costs and how health care remains under threat by Donald Trump and MAGA Republicans. 

Watch the event here.

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In News

U.S. Rep. Susan Wild Headlines Allentown Event During Protect Our Care’s “Lower Costs, Better Care” Bus Tour

***MEDIA ADVISORY FOR SUNDAY, SEPTEMBER 29, 2024 AT 12:00 PM ET***

Care Force One Rolls into Allentown, PA as it Travels Across 17+ States, Makes Over 50 Stops, and Covers Nearly 12,000 Miles

Watch All Bus Tour Stops Live Here.

Allentown, PA — To kick off week two of Protect Our Care’s “Lower Costs, Better Care” bus tour, U.S. Representative Susan Wild (PA-07) will join health care advocates and Protect Our Care for an event in Allentown, PA to make sure Pennsylvanians understand how the Biden-Harris administration and Democrats in Congress worked to lower health care costs for Americans. By passing the Inflation Reduction Act, they provided relief to those who purchase insurance on their own, capped the monthly cost of insulin, and gave Medicare the power to negotiate drug prices. While we celebrate this progress, Donald Trump and MAGA Republicans are fighting to go backwards, raise costs, take away protections for pre-existing conditions, and leave millions of people without critical coverage. MAGA Republicans want us to go back to the days when insurance companies made the rules and could deny people coverage.

During each stop, national and local elected officials, health care advocates, and storytellers are sounding the alarm about the threat Donald Trump and MAGA Republicans pose to American health care and celebrating the historic steps the Biden-Harris administration has taken to provide working families the quality, affordable care they need to stay healthy. Later this week, the tour continues in New York, Pennsylvania, and New Hampshire. Over six weeks, Care Force One will travel to more than 17 states, make more than 50 stops, and travel nearly 12,000 miles.

ALLENTOWN, PENNSYLVANIA:

WHO:

Representative Susan Wild (PA-07)
Paul Anthony,  IBEW Local Union #375
Laura Packard, cancer survivor and health care advocate

WHERE: IBEW Local 375, 101 South 7th St, Allentown, PA 18101

WHEN: Sunday, September 29, 2024 at 12:00 PM ET

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In News

TODAY: Congressman Steven Horsford, Assemblywoman Venicia Considine, Advocates to Highlight Republican Threats to Affordable, Accessible Health Care for Nevadans

*** MEDIA ADVISORY FOR WEDNESDAY, SEPTEMBER 25 AT 11 AM PT // 2 PM ET***

Las Vegas, Nevada – On Wednesday, September 25 at 11 AM PT // 2 PM ET, Congressman Steven Horsford, Assemblywoman Venicia Considine, One APIA Nevada Executive Director, Eric Jeng, and Inflation Reduction Beneficiary, Donna West, will join Protect Our Care Nevada to highlight Donald Trump and MAGA Republicans’ threats to health care and their efforts to eliminate and rollback policies championed by the Biden-Harris administration and congressional Democrats that have lowered prescription drug costs and increased access to quality, affordable health care for Nevadans. Trump has repeatedly vowed to repeal the Affordable Care Act and the Inflation Reduction Act, which have strengthened health care and lowered costs. Project 2025, the dangerous GOP plan for a second Trump presidency, promises to slash funding for Medicare and Medicaid, expand junk health insurance plans, ban Medicare from negotiating for lower drug prices, and strip away remaining reproductive rights. If Trump and his MAGA allies in Congress get their way, over 96,379 Nevadans are at risk of losing their coverage, 80,464 will face higher premiums, and over 60,000 seniors on Medicare will have to pay more for life-saving medications. 

At the same time, the Biden-Harris administration has fought tirelessly to protect and expand health care benefits for Nevadans. Recently, they announced a $500 million investment into ACA navigators, which comes after a record 21.3 million people nationwide signed up for coverage under ACA marketplaces in 2023, including 99,312 Nevadans. Thanks to the Inflation Reduction Act, seniors are saving on their prescription drug costs, as insulin prices are capped at $35 per month, Medicare is negotiating for lower drug prices, and out-of-pocket costs will be capped at $2000 per month starting in 2025. While Trump and his MAGA allies wage war on American health care, the Biden-Harris administration continues to prioritize the health and well-being of Americans across Nevada and the country.

PRESS CALL

WHO:
Congressman Steven Horsford
Assemblywoman Venicia Considine
One APIA Nevada Executive Director, Eric Jeng
Inflation Reduction Beneficiary Donna West

WHAT: Virtual Press Conference

WHEN: Wednesday, September 25 at 11 AM PT // 2 PM ET

WHERE: Register to join the Zoom event (Registration required)

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In News

JOINT STATEMENT: New Consumer Coalition Echoes Senator Shaheen, Senator Baldwin, and Representative Underwood’s Call to Make ACA Tax Credits Permanent Now

Statement Comes from 11 Leading Groups of New Consumer-Focused Coalition

Washington, D.C. — This week, a new Consumer Coalition on ACA Enhanced Premium Tax Credits came together to urge Congress to act swiftly to prevent premiums from skyrocketing for nearly 20 million people and jeopardizing coverage for millions by making enhanced premium tax credits permanent. The Coalition supports legislation introduced by Senator Jeanne Shaheen, Senator Tammy Baldwin, and Representative Lauren Underwood that would make permanent the enhanced premium tax credits originally authorized by the American Rescue Plan and later extended by the Inflation Reduction Act. Last week, Senator Jeanne Shaheen and Representative Lauren Underwood released letters calling on Congressional leadership to make enhanced subsidies permanent at the next possible legislative opportunity. The letters were signed by 190+ Members of Congress across the House and Senate.

The Consumer Coalition on ACA Enhanced Premium Tax Credits began meeting in May 2024 to support the permanent extension of the enhanced financial assistance that makes Marketplace premiums more affordable and tax credits available to more people who buy coverage on their own. Members of the Consumer Coalition on ACA Enhanced Premium Tax Credits represent leading advocacy organizations and policy institutes, patients with cancer and chronic illnesses who rely on premium tax credits for access to care, older people and younger people who purchase coverage on their own, and who could otherwise not afford it, and people of color who face systemic barriers to accessing coverage and care.

The Consumer Coalition on ACA Enhanced Premium Tax Credits released the following statement: 

“We believe that affordable health care should be a right and not a privilege. Senator Jeanne Shaheen, Senator Tammy Baldwin, and Representative Lauren Underwood are fighting for middle-class families and working to keep health care affordable for people who buy coverage on their own by calling for the immediate extension of enhanced premium tax credits. 

“Nearly 20 million people are counting on these tax credits to afford their health care, with families of four saving an average of $2,400 per year. This has led to extraordinary coverage gains and reduced costs, helped push the percentage of people with health coverage to record highs, and has especially helped people who have historically lacked access to coverage: people of color, women, those who live in rural areas, people in states that have refused to expand Medicaid, and those in states with especially high health care costs. 

“The Affordable Care Act is a bedrock of our health care system. Since its implementation, nearly 50 million people have relied on an ACA Marketplace plan, and as a result of the enhanced premium tax credits, more people than ever before are able to access quality, affordable coverage. We cannot go back. People deserve to be able to rely on affordable health coverage for decades to come, which is why we believe Congress should make enhanced premium tax credits permanent without delay.”

Background

Enhanced premium tax credits are lowering health care premiums for nearly 20 million people. They have contributed to the record-low uninsurance rate, led approximately 10 million more people to gain coverage, allowed millions of people to enroll in plans with lower out-of-pocket costs, and made $0 premium plans available to people who make less than 150 percent of the federal poverty level (about $22,600 for an individual and $46,800 for a family of four). 

Members of the Consumer Coalition on ACA Enhanced Premium Tax Credits include American Cancer Society Cancer Action Network, Center for American Progress, Community Catalyst, Families USA, The Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights, National Association for the Advancement of Colored People, National Partnership for Women & Families, Protect Our Care, UnidosUS, United States of Care, and Young Invincibles.

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