WASHINGTON, DC –  Despite the fact that doctors, nurses, hospitals, and the non-partisan Congressional Budget Office (CBO) have sounded the alarm that repealing Obamacare and replacing it with Trumpcare would lead to widespread health coverage losses for 24 million Americans and wreak havoc on the medical finances for patients and the nation’s health care industry alike, Congressional Republicans are still trying to speed passage of the bill.

“Republicans want to rush Trumpcare through without public examination because they know it is not good for the vast majority of Americans.  That is unacceptable,” said U.S. Senator Jack Reed.  “So far, special interests have gotten more input on this bill than the American people.  These special interests know that Trumpcare will cost people more and cover them less, which may be good for someone’s bottom line, but it would be bad for most people’s wallets and public health.  Trumpcare was sewn together in a haphazard way and won’t function as intended.  Instead of taking the time to get it right, Republicans seem intent on rushing Trumpcare through before Americans realize they’ll be charged more for less coverage.”

Today, Reed joined U.S. Senator Chris Murphy (D-CT) and 16 of their Senate colleagues in sending a letter telling Senate Republican leadership not to try to jam Trumpcare through without a transparent and deliberative process.

In a letter to Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY), Senate Finance Committee Chairman Orrin Hatch (R-UT), and Senate Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions (HELP) Committee Chairman Lamar Alexander (R-Tenn.), the 18 senators contrasted the dozens of bipartisan meetings and hearings, and more than 160 hours of floor debate over the Affordable Care Act, with the unprecedented speed at which Congressional Republicans are currently trying to force Trumpcare through Congress.

“In light of your continued desire to repeal and replace the ACA, we wanted to remind you of the extensive and open debate the Senate conducted in drafting and passing the ACA in 2009. In total, the Senate spent more than 160 hours considering the health reform legislation,” wrote the Senators. “By comparison, in 2017 the Republican-majority Senate has rushed through an unprecedented budget resolution that did not even go through the Budget Committee in order to set the stage for a reckless ACA repeal reconciliation bill and has had zero hearings on a replacement plan.

The senators continued, “For many of our constituents, this is a matter of life and death that should not be rushed. With so much at stake, the American people deserve an equally open and thorough debate on the future of the health care sector as occurred in 2009.”

While debating the Affordable Care Act in 2009, Senate consideration of the bill included:

  • 25 consecutive days, 160 hours, of debate on the Senate floor
  • 57 bipartisan HELP Committee hearings, meetings, roundtables and walkthroughs
  • 300 HELP Committee amendments
  •  Adopted more than 160 Republican amendments
  • 53 Finance Committee hearings, meetings, negotiations and walkthroughs
  • 7-day Finance Committee markup
  • Adopted 11 Republican amendments

In addition to Murphy and Reed, U.S. Senators Tammy Baldwin (D-WS), Cory Booker (D-NJ), Sherrod Brown (D-OH), Tom Carper (D-DE), Dick Durbin (D-IL), Al Franken (D-MN), Maggie Hassan (D-NH), Patrick Leahy (D-VT), Ed Markey (D-MA), Bob Menendez (D-NJ), Brian Schatz (D-HI), Jeanne Shaheen (D-NH), Debbie Stabenow (D-MI), Tom Udall (D-NM), Chris Van Hollen (D-MD), and Elizabeth Warren (D-MA) signed the letter.

The full text of the letter follows:

The Honorable Mitch McConnell
Senate Majority Leader
317 Russell Senate Office Building
Washington, DC 20510

The Honorable Orrin Hatch
Chairman
Senate Finance Committee
104 Hart Office Building
Washington, DC 20510

The Honorable Lamar Alexander
Chairman
Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions (HELP)
455 Dirksen Senate Office Building
Washington, DC 20510

Dear Leader McConnell, Chairman Hatch, and Chairman Alexander:

In light of your continued desire to repeal and replace the Affordable Care Act (ACA), we wanted to remind you of the extensive and open debate the Senate conducted in drafting and passing the ACA in 2009. Because the ACA touches the lives of millions of American families and those in the medical community, we expect that you will follow a similarly transparent and deliberative process on any legislation that would repeal, replace or amend the law.

As a reminder, in 2009, the HELP Committee held 14 bipartisan roundtables, 13 bipartisan hearings, and 20 bipartisan walkthroughs on health reform. The HELP Committee then considered nearly 300 amendments and accepted more than 160 Republican amendments during the debate on the bill.

Additionally, the Finance Committee held 17 roundtables, summits, and hearings on the topic. The committee also held 13 member meetings and walkthroughs and 38 meetings and negotiations for a total of 53 meetings on health reform. The debate in the Finance Committee concluded with a seven-day markup – the longest such markup in over two decades. During this process, the Finance Committee adopted 11 Republican amendments.

Furthermore, when the bill came to the floor, the Senate spent 25 consecutive days in session on health reform, the second longest consecutive session in history. In total, the Senate spent more than 160 hours considering the health reform legislation.

By comparison, in 2017 the Republican-majority Senate has rushed through an unprecedented budget resolution that did not even go through the Budget Committee in order to set the stage for a reckless ACA repeal reconciliation bill and has had zero hearings on a replacement plan.

The health care sector represents approximately one-sixth of the U.S. economy, but more importantly, millions of people rely on the coverage and insurance protections from the ACA. For many of our constituents, this is a matter of life and death that should not be rushed. With so much at stake, the American people deserve an equally open and thorough debate on the future of the health care sector as occurred in 2009.