June 16, 2017      5:33 PM

Health care advocates lament potential cuts to Medicaid

Medicaid is $62 billion of the $217 billion budget and 900,000 people have accessed the ACA exchanges for insurance coverage, of which 86 percent receive some amount of federal subsidy

As Obamacare continues to limp along, a coalition of 20 organizations have signed onto a letter asking US Senators Ted Cruz and John Cornyn to oppose the permanent cuts to Medicaid outlined in the so-called American Health Care Act.

The healthcare exchange in Texas is beginning to fail, which many Democrats would argue has become a self-fulfilling prophesy once Republicans announced the intention to repeal and replace Obamacare. On a conference call with reporters this week, Cornyn said more than a third of Texas counties are down to one insurance carrier under the exchange.

“The insurance companies are pulling out because they’re hemorrhaging cash, they’re losing money,” Cornyn said. “They simply can’t afford to stay in the exchanges.”

What the US Senate will do to replace Obamacare is still a black box, one that leaves Texas health care advocates with a sense of unease.

By Kimberly Reeves

Copyright June 16, 2017, Harvey Kronberg, www.quorumreport.com, All rights are reserved