News Release

“Opponents of last year’s health care reform law were defeated in the Senate today in their attempt to attach a health care repeal amendment to a bill about the Federal Aviation Administration. Passage of the repeal amendment would have driven health care costs for American consumers and businesses sky-high.

“According to a recent report from ConnPIRG, The Cost of Repeal, consumers who purchase their own insurance would face up to 20% higher premiums under repeal. Repeal would drive up the cost of providing employer-sponsored insurance by $3,000 a year per employee, costing the economy between 2.5 and 4 million jobs over the next decade.

“A separate study from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services found that one out of every two Americans has a health condition which would subject them to higher rates on the individual market or force them to cover their health care costs without insurance at all, if the law was repealed.

“Now that repeal has been defeated in the Senate, it's time that Congress finally moves past the partisan bickering over last year's law and start working to find additional, common-ground solutions to the rising cost of health care.”