Colorado Representatives Call on Republicans to Protect Coloradan's Care from Pending Lawsuit

Press Release

Congresswoman Diana DeGette, Congressman Ed Perlmutter, and Adam Fox, Director of Strategic Engagement for the Colorado Consumer Health Initiative (CCHI) joined a press call today following Wednesday's vote in the House of Representatives to pass the Allred Resolution. This resolution authorizes House Counsel to go to court and defend the ACA in the Texas, et. al. vs. United States, et. al. lawsuit.

Nearly every Republican -- including Representatives Scott Tipton, Ken Buck and Doug Lamborn -- voted against the resolution.

"This lawsuit is an affront to Coloradans and yet another attempt to rip away health care from thousands of people in our state," said Congresswoman Diana DeGette. "I have fought and will continue to fight to protect the Affordable Care Act and ensure the provisions that are benefitting countless families remain intact."

"It was disappointing to see that my Republican colleagues did not support this resolution," said Congressman Ed Perlmutter. "They had an opportunity to stand up for Coloradans with pre-existing conditions that depend on the Affordable Care Act for coverage and instead chose to jeopardize the health care of hundreds of thousands in our state."

"We are very pleased that the U.S. House of Representatives took a stand for the Affordable Care Act yesterday," said Adam Fox, Director of Strategic Engagement for the Colorado Consumer Health Initiative. "Rolling back the ACA means stripping coverage from thousands of Coloradans and rolling back provisions many families depend on. We believe this resolution is an important step to protect our care."

The vote followed a new poll from Public Policy Polling (PPP) for Protect Our Care released earlier this week showing that more than half of voters oppose the recent court decision striking down the Affordable Care Act and sixty-nine percent of voters say it's a major concern to them that the court case would eliminate protections for pre-existing conditions, such as cancer, diabetes, and asthma.

You can listen to the full press call here.

What's at stake for Colorado:

The coverage that more than 600,000 Coloradans gained through the marketplace exchange and Medicaid
Protections for 2,350,900 Coloradans who have a pre-existing health condition.
The health care of roughly 40,000 young adults in Colorado who have coverage because they can stay on their parents coverage until age 26.
The nearly 2,519,638 Coloradans, most of whom have employer coverage, who can access free preventive care at no cost.
The 2,949,000 Coloradans with employer coverage who no longer have to worry about lifetime or annual limits.
Seniors' drug savings -- 56,531 Colorado seniors are saving $61.1 million on drugs in 2017, an average of $1,081 per beneficiary because the ACA closed the Medicare prescription drug doughnut hole.

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