WASHINGTON, D.C. – This week, U.S. Senator Jerry Moran (R-Kan.) shared a story on the U.S. Senate Floor about a Kansan facing rising health insurance costs due to Obamacare. Unfortunately, this individual is one of many Kansans who have contacted him to share similar stories about the real-world, negative impacts of this flawed policy.

“Part of our job as members of the United States Senate is to help people who have problems,” Sen. Moran said. “This has been a very difficult time for many, many Americans and it’s difficult for me as somebody who wants to be able to help Kansans with their problems. Surely we can develop a policy, a program to care for Americans without doing damage to people who already have insurance.”

Highlights from Sen. Moran’s remarks can be found below, along with links for downloadable video and audio:

“…As my colleagues have indicated, the letters, the phone calls, the conversations, the emails continue to come. The one I’d like to highlight…is from a person who describes herself as a 62-year-old female retired teacher from Wichita, and she says she considers herself a middle-class American. She indicates in her letter that her current health policy expires at the end of this year, less than a month away. Here’s what she says in her letter:

‘When I inquired why, I was told the policy no longer meets the guidelines under Obamacare. Yet, in the previous two years my premiums have increased 25 percent and 28 percent, respectively, to which the answer from my insurer was it helps pay for Obamacare—now I can't even have that plan any longer. After 20 hours online, multiple calls…online chats, I finally was able to see numbers from health care costs for the Obamacare marketplace only to learn…a plan from my current insurance was double the premium.

‘I will not qualify for tax credits as my projected income for 2014 places this middle-class retired American over the threshold of any kind of subsidy. I’m sad that my well-laid plans for retirement now will redirect my earnings to pay for health care—much of which I will never use. At 62 and having had a hysterectomy, prenatal care is not an issue I will face...as those parts are gone, but I will have no discount for not needing those coverages.

‘So I am paying a higher premium. I’m very frustrated with these changes…It’s the middle class that will be hit the worst by this mandate and I fear many will opt for a government fine because now they truly won’t be able to afford the cost of health care. How will folks who can't even make the premium payment ever be able to pay the outrageous deductible? Honestly, $6,500 out-of-pocket expense per person per year?’”

Sen. Moran strongly opposes Obamacare and believes the best course of action is to dismantle the law and replace it with practical reforms that are workable and will actually reduce health care costs. In July, President Obama acknowledged that a significant component of Obamacare is broken and delayed enforcement of the employer mandate. The following week, Sen. Moran offered amendments in the Senate Appropriations Committee to delay both the employer mandate and individual mandate. Unfortunately, both amendments were defeated in party-line votes.

FTP LINK:  Click here to download his floor speech. (Save to your desktop.)

AUDIO LINK:  Click here to download audio of the remarks.

YOUTUBE:  Click here to watch his remarks on YouTube.

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