Rep. Chu Statement on CBO Score of House-Passed AHCA

WASHINGTON, DC – Today, the nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office released its analysis of the impact of the amended version of the American Health Care Act (AHCA), and determined it would reduce the number of Americans with health insurance by 23 million over the next ten years. Rep. Judy Chu (CA-27) released the following statement:

"When the Republicans rushed to satisfy Donald Trump by passing their repeal of the Affordable Care Act (ACA), Americans implored them to at least wait for a CBO score so they could truly understand the impact of the bill. But Republicans plowed ahead anyway, and only today, with the release of the CBO's latest estimate, do we know just how dire those impacts are. For starters, this bill will result in 23 million fewer Americans having health insurance by 2026. And while it may be beneficial for some people who are young and healthy, the CBO analysis showed that low-income senior citizens could expect a staggering 800% increase in premiums. And for those who do maintain coverage, the CBO estimates that they could see their premiums increase ‘by thousands of dollars in a given year' to cover essential services like maternity care, mental health, and substance abuse services if they live in a state that seeks a waiver allowed under the AHCA. This bill fails to meet our obligations to the American people and now, armed with this data, I hope the Senate rejects this bill so we can start working on the real fixes to the ACA needed to increase coverage and lower costs."