On the same day that Republicans are filing briefs in support of the Supreme Court lawsuit to dismantle the Affordable Care Act, a new report from the House Energy and Commerce Committee reveals that short-term junk health insurance plans supported by Senate Republicans “force many to pay for lifesaving treatments,” “often exclude coverage for pre-existing conditions,” and “charge women more for the same coverage.” According to the Wall Street Journal, the review of consumer complaints against insurers “found numerous examples of patients who were denied coverage for treatment, leaving consumers on the hook for hundreds of thousands of dollars.”
Vulnerable incumbent Senators Martha McSally, Cory Gardner, Steve Daines, David Perdue, Joni Ernst, Mitch McConnell, Thom Tillis, Lindsey Graham, and John Cornyn all failed a critical “litmus test for anyone who claims to support protecting people with preexisting conditions” by voting to defend the expansion of these junk plans, which are “so skimpy that they offer no meaningful coverage” and can leave patients saddled with “catastrophic costs.”
The White House is pushing these junk plans for people who have lost their health insurance as a result of the pandemic — despite the fact that these plans aren’t required to cover testing or treatment for COVID-19. Senate Republicans are also refusing to press the Trump administration to open a special enrollment period for health insurance and have “no plan” to help the newly uninsured get coverage.
Wall Street Journal: Shorter-Term Health Plans Force Many to Pay for Lifesaving Treatments, Report Finds
By Stephanie Armour
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