Carper Statement on Finance Hearing with HHS Secretary Azar

WASHINGTON – Today, U.S. Senator Tom Carper (D-Del.), a member of the Senate Finance Committee, released the following statement on the Finance Committee hearing with Health and Human Services (HHS) Secretary Alex Azar to examine President Trump’s fiscal year 2019 budget request.

“Despite all of this administration’s hell-bent efforts to destabilize our insurance marketplaces and sabotage enrollment, 11.8 million Americans signed up to get covered through the federal and state marketplaces for 2018. 

“The president’s budget proposes repealing the Affordable Care Act and replacing it with a proposal that eliminates tax credits to make health insurance more affordable, cuts more than $1.4 trillion out of Medicaid and takes away critical protections that ensure individuals with preexisting conditions can get comprehensive health care at a reasonable cost. The American people were loud and clear when they squarely rejected this harmful proposal last year. If insanity is doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results, it’s insane that this administration would propose the same repeal-and-replace strategy that our constituents have already overwhelmingly rejected. Our president and this administration need to accept the reality that Americans support the Affordable Care Act, and work with Congress to stabilize the marketplace and lower health care costs for all.”

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