Edwards Administration Urges Congress Not To Repeal Obamacare

Governor John Bel Edwards has sent a letter to Congress urging national leaders not to repeal the Affordable Care Act. But, US Senator Bill Cassidy says Obamacare isn’t working for everyone. He says when premiums and deductibles cost thousands of dollars, that’s anything but affordable.

“We hear how great it is that Obamacare has given so many people coverage. Say that to someone who has a $6,000 deductible,” Cassidy said.

Cassidy has proposed the Patient Freedom Act, which gives states the option to choose whether or not to keep Obamacare. He says the bill would repeal the ACA on a federal level, including the individual and employer mandates, and it would prevent the federal government from forcing people to pay penalties for not having insurance. He says states could then decide their own plan of action.

“I think this recognizes that if the Minority Leader wants to claim it’s working in New York, they can keep it, but clearly Obamacare is not working in some other states,” Cassidy said.

But Louisiana Department of Health Secretary Dr. Rebekah Gee urges federal lawmakers not to fix what isn’t broken. While she admits Obamacare is causing premiums to go up nationwide, she is adamant that the Medicaid expansion has been a godsend.

“The economic impact has been so good, and then on the health front 375,000 people have gotten care. They’ve gotten insurance, and they’ve gotten care,” Gee said.

Gee says she and the governor look forward to working with Congress to find a suitable replacement for Obamacare. She says their top priority is maintaining coverage for Louisiana residents. She says repealing the ACA without a replacement would have drastic consequences for Louisiana.

“What we don’t want is to create a fiscal crisis for the state, put our insurance into a dust spiral tailspin where everyone’s insurance goes up,” Gee said.