ICYMI in the New Dem Dispatch: Freshman Leadership Rep. Kristen McDonald Rivet Details Healthcare Crisis in Mid-Michigan
“Speaker Johnson needs to stop cancelling votes and call the House back immediately so we can stop the impending health care crisis from devastating families in Michigan and across the country. The American people can’t afford for us to wait any longer.”
Last Friday, New Democrat Coalition Freshman Leadership Representative Kristen McDonald Rivet (MI-08) penned her “Letter from mid-Michigan” in the New Dem Dispatch, the Coalition’s Substack.
In this letter, Rep. McDonald Rivet shares the stories of her constituents who are facing dramatic monthly healthcare premium price increases, detailing the real human toll of Congressional Republicans’ refusal to make a deal that lowers healthcare costs for working Americans.
Through these first-hand accounts from members of her community, McDonald Rivet makes the argument that Congress must act immediately to extend the ACA tax credits and protect healthcare: “This crisis is playing out in front of our eyes and in every community across the country. Waiting any longer to act will be devastating.”
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You can read the full piece here, and below:
Last January, after a really tough campaign, I was sworn in as the newest member of Congress from mid-Michigan. My district, which includes the City of Flint, is struggling economically, and most people have a hard time making ends meet. My goal at swearing-in and my top priority now is to bring salaries up and costs down.
Unfortunately, things are getting worse instead of better on the affordability front. Tariffs are causing everything from furniture to groceries to be more expensive than they were in January. And now, the sweeping cuts to Medicaid and the loss of the Affordable Care Act (ACA) tax credits are leading to a health care affordability crisis.
Last weekend, my husband and I had dinner at our favorite little Italian restaurant. In the middle of the meal, the owner stopped by the table to check on us, and then asked if he could sit down for a minute. What he said almost knocked me out of my chair.
“Kristen,” he said. “My health care premium bill for next year just came in, and we went from $900 a month to $3,200 a month.” That’s $27,600 more per year.
It’s frightening, and he’s not alone. Millions of Americans are experiencing the same sticker shock as they receive notice of their insurance premiums next year and the life-altering cost increases.
Rachelle – a self-employed woman from Bay City, Michigan – told me her premiums will go up $1,200 a month, and she’ll “have to make a difficult choice to not carry health insurance and pay [her] other bills.”
Kathleen – a teacher from Midland, Michigan – wrote to me saying, “Without the tax credits for ACA, there is no way I could pay for health care!”
Another couple from Bay City shared that their premiums are going to rise by almost $11,000 per year.
I hear stories like this every day, everywhere; in church, at the grocery store, at the side of a soccer field. People are worried.
They all want to know: why is this happening? One major reason is that the ACA tax credits are set to expire at the end of this year. Nearly one in seven Americans relies on these tax credits, and 93% of the tax credits go to families making less than $63,000 a year.
When these tax credits expire, health care premiums will more than double for people enrolled through the ACA marketplace. For some, they will triple. The consequences will hit everybody, as prices will go through the roof for everybody, no matter how they get their coverage.
70% of jobs in mid-Michigan pay less than $60,000 a year. We don’t have $27,600 lying around to cover these costs.
This is simply unaffordable. Small businesses will shut down, young people will risk going without coverage, and families will be forced to choose between health insurance and meals, medicine, or a mortgage.
And it gets worse: when you factor in Republicans’ trillion-dollar cut to Medicaid earlier this year, 15 million people across the country are going to lose their health care entirely, including over 32,000 in my district.
This crisis is playing out in front of our eyes and in every community across the country. Waiting any longer to act will be devastating. People are already being notified of these extreme premium hikes, and the ACA marketplace officially opens on November 1. Extending the ACA tax credits isn’t a December issue like Speaker Johnson thinks it is; it’s a NOW issue.
New Dems are ready and willing to work with anyone who is serious about passing a budget that puts working families first — and that includes extending these health care tax cuts that so many working families need to access health care.
Speaker Johnson needs to stop cancelling votes and call the House back immediately so we can stop the impending health care crisis from devastating families in Michigan and across the country. The American people can’t afford for us to wait any longer.
- New Democrat Coalition Freshman Leadership Representative Kristen McDonald Rivet (MI-08)
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