Category: Nurse Advocacy

Major policy changes require serious debate.

Congress is discussing the future of the Affordable Care Act – and the conversation in Washington right now could lead to a repeal without any plan for replacement, leaving care for your patients up in the air.

House Speaker Paul Ryan and Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell have the power to get Congress back on track – share your thoughts now on the Affordable Care Act and the impact you’ve seen it have on your patients. We’ll deliver your message right to their offices.

Nurses along with other health care providers, patients and advocates are speaking out against this plan – or lack thereof – and are calling for solutions that protect the most critical components of the law, including access to coverage.

Repealing without any replacement is simply irresponsible. The majority of Americans support the critical parts of the ACA – like protections for pre–existing conditions, retaining coverage for adult children, and increasing access to preventative services – all of which would be wiped away without a plan in place.

You know what your patients need. Mitch McConnell and Paul Ryan don’t. It’s as simple as that.

Will you raise your voice to help stop this insanity? Share your experience and perspective with Speaker Ryan and Leader McConnell. Demand that they find a better way forward for all Americans.

Thank you for standing up for your patients!

During today’s White House press conference, President Trump highlighted some of his Administration’s early executive actions, including a government-wide hiring freeze. Late last week we learned that nurses would be exempt from the order.

Inside Health Policy obtained a copy of the guidance issued by HHS Acting Deputy Secretary Coleen Barros, which detailed the agency’s intentions for implementing the President’s January 23rd Executive Order.

The memo identifies occupations related to public health and medical emergencies under statute, including the Public Health Service Act, the Federal Food, Drug and Cosmetic Act, the Social Security Act, as well as initiatives related to the opioid epidemic, pandemic influenza, Ebola and Zika.

The Senate started considering amendments to the fiscal 2017 budget resolution, a process known as budget reconciliation, which will pave the way for repeal of large sections of the Affordable Care Act including: premium subsidies, cost sharing subsidies, contraception coverage, Medicaid expansion, the individual mandate, and the employer mandate.

What is the budget reconciliation process?
The budget reconciliation process is used to address tax and spending matters, including entitlement spending (i.e. Medicare, Medicaid). The process is an effective legislative tool as it is not subject to the Senate’s typical 60-vote threshold for passage. Rather, the bill can be passed by a simple majority of 50-votes.

Policy experts assert that repealing ACA’s unpopular provisions, like the individual and employer mandates as well as the law’s accompanying tax revenue, make it nearly impossible to preserve its most popular provisions – preexisting condition protections, subsidies that make quality coverage affordable, Medicaid expansion to 10million Americans.

Republican lawmakers are increasingly expressing public concern over plans to use the reconciliation process to repeal without a replacement.

ANA is actively engaged in these ongoing discussions, meeting and working with Members of Congress and coalition partners throughout the health care community to ensure the nursing profession’s voice is heard loud and clear.

Check back in to stay up to date on the latest health care reform developments.