Commentary: Today, U.S. Senator Tom Udall blasted the newly revised Republican health care bill, which would still kick nearly 300,000 New Mexicans off their health care and cost the state almost 50,000 jobs by 2022. Udall has heard from over 10,000 New Mexicans, almost all of whom have urged him to fight the dangerous plan to repeal and replace the health care protections made possible through the Affordable Care Act. View some of their stories here: https://twitter.com/i/moments/877938433133555713
"The Republicans may have revised their bill, but they didn’t improve it. It's still a terrible deal for regular New Mexicans. It still guts spending for Medicaid and would force almost 300,000 New Mexicans to lose their health care. It still would devastate New Mexico’s economy, killing almost 50,000 jobs. It still would slash funding that rural hospitals and clinics rely on, forcing some to close -- including one I visited last week in Fort Sumner. It still is devastating for people seeking treatment for alcohol, opioid and drug addiction. And it still amounts to an age-tax on older Americans.
"The revisions give new tax breaks -- $60 billion worth -- to wealthy people with health savings accounts, on the backs of working families, seniors, children, women and people with pre-existing conditions. Meanwhile, it goes back to the old days when insurance companies were allowed to deny coverage for the care people need.
"This fight is far from over. Senate Republicans are still scrambling to pass TrumpCare in the next few weeks, and I’m going to fight as hard as I can to protect the health care of New Mexicans. We need to roll up our sleeves and work together – not as Democrats or Republicans, but as Americans – to make sure all Americans have access to affordable health care. And to make sure we don’t go back to the days when people who got sick were at the mercy of insurance companies’ bottom lines."