Herger Files Discharge Petition to Repeal and Replace ObamaCare

Statement

Congressman Wally Herger (R-CA), Ranking Member of the Ways & Means Subcommittee on Health, filed a discharge petition on H.R. 5424, the Reform Americans Can Afford Act, which would repeal the Democrats' health care law and replace it with commonsense solutions to bring down health care costs. House Republican Leader John Boehner (R-OH), Republican Whip Eric Cantor (R-VA), and Ranking Member of the Ways & Means Committee Dave Camp (R-MI) announced their support for the petition. The petition would force a vote on the bill in the House of Representatives if it is signed by a majority of House members.

Congressman Herger commented, "More than four months after the Democrats' health care overhaul became law, the bad news keeps coming. Employers are reluctant to hire more workers because they face new taxes and higher health costs. Millions of Americans are in danger of losing the coverage they have and like, while half a trillion dollars in Medicare cuts threaten senior citizens' access to health care. Just last week, the latest Medicare Trustees report informed us that 9 in 10 seniors will lose their employer-sponsored prescription drug coverage as a result of the Democrats' health care law. The facts couldn't be clearer: The Democrats' health plan is bad for patients, bad for jobs, bad for seniors, and bad for America.

"My legislation, the Reform Americans Can Afford Act, would repeal the Democrats' health overhaul and replace it with commonsense reforms that will actually bring down health costs, like cracking down on frivolous medical lawsuits, allowing insurance companies to compete across state lines, and fully funding state-run programs that offer affordable coverage for people with pre-existing medical conditions. According to the Congressional Budget Office, it would reduce health insurance premiums by up to 20% without spending a trillion dollars, raising taxes, or cutting Medicare. Unfortunately, Democratic leaders in Congress have not allowed this bill to come up for a vote. With Speaker Nancy Pelosi calling the House into special session to approve the latest add-on to the Democrats' failed "stimulus" plan, I am offering a clear alternative to the tax-and-spend agenda.

"I call on all members of Congress to sign the discharge petition on the Reform Americans Can Afford Act. If Democrats persist in saying "No" to real health care solutions, the American people will see who is truly the "Party of No.'"

Republican Leader Boehner added, "The more the American people learn about ObamaCare - with its job-killing mandates, tax hikes, and Medicare cuts - the less they like it. We need to repeal it, and start over on common-sense, step-by-step reforms to lower costs. This discharge petition will begin that process. In addition to repealing ObamaCare, it includes reforms like allowing people to buy insurance across state lines, reducing junk lawsuits, and expanding access to state high-risk pools for folks with pre-existing conditions. This is the kind of change the American people are looking for."

Republican Whip Cantor said, "Last year, President Obama and the democrat majority promised the American people their health care proposal would lower costs and that if ensure that patients who liked the coverage they had could keep it. Just months later, the American people have learned that the President and the Democrats in Congress broke those promises, as the new health care law will meet neither of those tests. The American people deserve better, and that's why we need to repeal ObamaCare and replace it with a bill that makes lowering costs and preserving the doctor-patient relationship the top priority."

Ranking Member Camp said, "There is no hiding the fact that Democrats' health care law has proven to be bad for seniors, bad for employers and bad for American workers. Even the Obama Administration recently admitted their health care law, and the one-half trillion dollars in cuts to Medicare it contains, will jeopardize seniors' access to care. This bill will repeal the Democrats' health care law and replace it with common sense solutions that the non-partisan Congressional Budget Office predict will reduce the cost of health insurance for Americans without increasing taxes , without cutting Medicare and without putting Washington bureaucrats in charge of your health care."