Cunningham Votes to Pass the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Enhancement Act

Washington, D.C. – Rep. Joe Cunningham (SC-01) today voted to pass comprehensive, bipartisan legislation that lowers health coverage costs for American families; lowers the cost of prescription drugs; expands coverage to Americans across the country, including in South Carolina; combats inequity in health coverage faced by communities of color; cracks down on junk plans; and strengthens protections for people with pre-existing conditions. Last week, in the midst of the coronavirus pandemic, the Trump Administration asked the Supreme Court to strike down the protections afforded to Americans by the Affordable Care Act, including coverage for the millions of Americans with pre-existing conditions.

“As South Carolinians continue to deal with this unprecedented public health crisis, it is clear that access to quality, affordable health care is more important than ever,” said Rep. Joe Cunningham. “The bipartisan bill we passed today includes my legislation to encourage states like South Carolina to expand Medicaid and ensure veterans can benefit from lower drug prices.  I am proud we worked together to deliver lower health costs and prescription drug prices, and I urge the Senate to act as soon as possible so we can get this signed into law.”

The Patient Protection and Affordable Care Enhancement Act includes legislation Cunningham introduced earlier this year, the Medicaid REACH act, which would require South Carolina and other states that have not expanded Medicaid to publish a yearly report on access to affordable health care coverage in their state. Right now, South Carolinians’ tax dollars are being used to pay for Medicaid expansion in other states, without receiving any of the benefits. In other states, Medicaid expansion has helped increase access to care and improve health outcomes; promote financial security by reducing medical debt and protecting people from medical bankruptcy; and lower uncompensated care costs for hospitals, allowing rural hospitals to stay afloat.

The Patient Protection and Affordable Care Enhancement Act also includes a bipartisan amendment authored by Cunningham that was previously passed in legislation to lower to cost of prescription drugs. This amendment would make lower prices negotiated by this legislation available to veterans within the VA health care system.

The Patient Protection and Affordable Care Enhancement Act:  

• Lowers health coverage costs by dramatically expanding the ACA’s insurance affordability subsidies to cover more middle class families and to be more generous for those already receiving them.  Many enrollees will see their premiums cut by half or more, and for the first time, no one will have to pay more than 8.5 percent of their income for a silver plan in the ACA marketplaces.  
• Negotiates for lower prescription drug prices by delivering the power to negotiate lower drug prices so that Americans no longer have to pay more for our medicines than Big Pharma charges for the same drugs overseas.
• Expands coverage by pressing Medicaid expansion in hold-out states while restoring the outreach and advertising funding that enables Americans to learn about the affordable health coverage available to them under the ACA.
• Combats inequity in health coverage faced by communities of color by expanding more affordable coverage to vulnerable populations and fighting the maternal mortality epidemic by requiring states to extend Medicaid or CHIP coverage to new mothers for a full year post-partum.
• Cracks down on junk plans & strengthens protections for people with pre-existing conditions by reversing the Trump Administration’s expansion of junk health insurance plans that do not provide coverage for essential medical treatments and drugs and that are allowed to discriminate against people with pre-existing medical conditions.