INDIANAPOLIS – Congressman Messer and Congressman Rokita both remain silent on President Trump’s late night decision to singlehandedly send Hoosiers’ health care costs skyrocketing by halting cost-sharing reduction (CSR) payments.
In what the Washington Post described as “throwing a bomb” into our health care system, The White House last night confirmed that it would halt CSR payments, subsidies paid to insurers to keep insurance premiums for millions of Americans affordable. While the subsidies make up only a tiny portion of overall insurance costs, they play a vital role preventing costs from skyrocketing—estimates have shown that insurance premiums could rise by 20 percent every year without the payments.
Trump’s decision has been criticized by major actors in our healthcare industry, including everyone from the U.S. Chamber of Commerce to America’s Health Insurance Plans. Even the GOP chairman of the Health Committee has said that “without payment of these cost-sharing reductions, Americans will be hurt.” The decision won’t even help with the budget deficit—the CBO estimates that it will actually increase the deficit by nearly $200 billion over a decade.
Despite these disastrous effects, however, neither Congressman Messer nor Congressman Rokita have weighed in to say if they support President Trump’s plan to blow a hole in our deficit, damage our health care system, and harm millions of Americans. Congressman Rokita released a statement yesterday afternoon on a completely separate, harmful Executive Order from the Trump Administration – but said nothing about the CSR payments. Congressman Messer, meanwhile, has said nothing at all.
“President Trump was unable to get the support he needed for his disastrous, unpopular health care program—so instead of making a deal to improve the ACA, he’s sabotaging the system without caring how badly Americans are hurt,” said Will Baskin-Gerwitz, Senior Media Strategist for the Indiana Democratic Party. “Are Congressmen Messer and Rokita so bound by partisanship and desperate for political gain that they’re willing to stand by this cruel decision? Or will they show even an ounce of concern for struggling Hoosiers and work to protect these vital payments?”
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