Sen. Brown continues fighting for Ohioans healthcare as GOP turns to courts to attack ACA

WASHINGTON, D.C. (TiffinOhio.net News) — U.S. Senator Sherrod Brown (D-OH) hosted a news conference call on Wednesday as he continues to speak out against ongoing efforts to sabotage the Affordable Care Act and throw millions of Americans off their health insurance.

On Tuesday, the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals heard oral arguments in the Texas v. United States case in which GOP leaders are seeking to eliminate the ACA.

In March, the Trump Administration told a federal court that it now supports invalidating the Affordable Care Actin its entirety and the President recently expressed support for a renewed effort to repeal ACA.

“The ACA has helped millions of Americans – including five million Ohioans under age 65 who have a preexisting condition. That’s half the population of our state. But right now, President Trump and his administration are pushing a case before the Supreme Court that threatens the health coverage of 20 million people and undermines pre-existing condition protections for all Americans,” said Brown.

Brown was joined on today’s conference call by Susan Halpern, a small business owner from Columbus who relies on the Affordable Care Act, to speak about the importance of the healthcare law, especially for individuals with pre-existing conditions.

Halpern is a breast cancer survivor who struggled to secure health insurance prior to enactment of the Affordable Care Act.

“As a breast cancer survivor and self employed small business owner here in Ohio I depend on the ACA for my healthcare. As one of the 102 million plus Americans with a preexisting condition I am very aware that without the ACA I would not be able to purchase health insurance for any price,” said Ms. Halpern.

More than 200,000 Ohioans were enrolled in ACA marketplace insurance in 2019. More than 600,000 Ohioans have healthcare coverage because of Medicaid expansion.

If GOP Attorneys General and Governors are successful in overturning the Affordable Care Act, the number of uninsured Americans would increase by 65 percent, 5.5 million young adultswould lose the option to stay on their parents’ healthcare plans, and hospitals would risk closure.

Brown has led efforts to stand up for Ohioans’ healthcare.

In 2017, Brown joined Ohio patients and patient advocates in cities around Ohio to underscore the importance of the Affordable Care Act and recently introduced legislation to make improvements to the Affordable Care Act by adding a public option to the individual marketplaces.

On the call, Brown underscored his commitment to fighting efforts in Washington and Columbus to attack the Affordable Care Act and continuing his work to ensure Ohioans have access to affordable, quality health insurance.