State Senator Gustavo Rivera's Call to Action Against Republican Efforts to Repeal the Affordable Care Act

January 13, 2017

Dear Friends,

Yesterday in the dead of night in an attempt to avoid public scrutiny, Senate Republicans passed a budget resolution that creates the blueprint to start a repeal of the Affordable Care Act. In doing so, they took a concrete step to strip away the healthcare coverage from over twenty million Americans who have enrolled in ACA since its enactment in 2010.
Senate Republicans also blocked critical amendments introduced by Senate Democrats that sought to protect some of the most crucial healthcare provisions included in President Obama's signature law. They voted against the following amendments:

* Protecting the 52 million Americans with pre-existing medical conditions
* Letting young adults stay on their parents' plan until the age of 26
* Maintaining access to contraceptive coverage
* Ensuring Medicaid expansion stays in place
* Protecting children on Medicaid or CHIP
* Protecting veterans' health care

Let's be very clear. The Affordable Care Act has provided the most vulnerable populations in our country access to affordable and quality healthcare coverage, Republicans and Democrats alike.

Therefore, we need to vigorously refuse any attempt at dismantling a law that is saving the lives of millions of our fellow Americans. As we continue our fight to #SAVEACA, I encourage you to call the Speaker of the House, Congressmember Paul Ryan, and U.S. Senate Majority Leader, Mitch McConnell, to voice your repudiation at their reckless actions. You can click on this link for scripts you can read to help you get an idea of what to say.

Mitch McConnell - (R - KY) (202) 224-2541
Paul Ryan - (R-WI), (202) 225-0600

My friends, this is not a drill.

Moving forward, we will need to work together as we take the fight to Republicans who have shamelessly put in jeopardy the lives of millions of Americans. As your representative and the Ranker of the Health Committee in the New York State Senate, I remain committed to fighting in our State Legislature to ensure New Yorkers access to quality and affordable health care is protected.

Sincerely,