WASHINGTON – U.S. Senator Jerry Moran (R-Kan.) released the following statement after the Senate passed the Restoring Americans’ Healthcare Freedom Reconciliation Act (H.R.3762) to repeal Obamacare:

“It has been more than five years since Obamacare was rammed through Congress on a purely partisan basis in the face of significant public opposition. After all this time, most Americans still oppose this unprecedented expansion of federal government intrusion into health care decisions for families and job creators. 

“This 2,700 page law has burdened millions of Americans with a litany of broken promises, higher taxes and costs, reduced health care choices, and new regulations that have stifled the economy. Individuals, families and employers continue to face increasing health insurance costs, new taxes overseen by a politically-biased IRS, burdensome mandates, and great uncertainty because of this flawed law. By repealing Obamacare, we can replace it with step-by-step improvements to enable individuals to purchase affordable health coverage that meets their unique needs and lower overall costs.”

Background

• Sen. Moran was the first Member of Congress to call to repeal Obamacare in January 2011.
• Obamacare will raise taxes by more than $1 trillion over the next decade, according to the nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office. For Kansans, additional taxes from Obamacare will be more than $949 million over the next 10 years.
• Health insurance premiums under Obamacare have increased between 2015 and 2016.
• President Obama promised that Obamacare would bring down premiums by $2,500 per year for the typical family. However, a November 2015 Gallup poll shows that nearly 1 in 3 Americans delay receiving health care for themselves and their families because of cost.  
• For 2016, the premium increase for benchmark silver plans on the Obamacare federal exchange is 7.5 percent – more than triple last year’s increase. By comparison, this cost increase is far more than the pay raises most Americans received as average hourly earnings have risen by just over 2 percent over the past year.
• In Kansas, premiums for benchmark silver plans on HealthCare.gov rose by more than 16 percent compared to the previous year.

###