IN SUPPORT OF THE AFFORDABLE CARE ACT AND EXPANDING HEALTHCARE FOR ALL

WHEREAS, in a functioning, prosperous and humane society, every individual should have needed healthcare; and

WHEREAS, the Affordable Care Act has increased access to care, has reduced medical debt, and has ensured that insurance companies cannot institute yearly or lifetime caps, nor limit or deny coverage due to pre-existing conditions; and

WHEREAS, according to the Kaiser Family Foundation, research demonstrates that Medicaid expansion has positively affected access to care, utilization of services, the affordability of care, financial stability, self-reported health and certain measures of health outcomes among the low-income population; and

WHEREAS, despite the gains made under the Affordable Care Act, the federal law was never expected to cover all who are uninsured, and many of the millions who were uninsured prior to the Affordable Care Act still lack any health coverage; and

WHEREAS, the health insurance system in our country remains highly fragmented, which itself adds to health costs through the cost of administration and paperwork; and

WHEREAS, instead of addressing these problems in any serious way, President Donald Trump’s administration has worked to sabotage the implementation of the Affordable Care Act, and the Republican congressional majorities have made repeated efforts to repeal the Affordable Care Act and slash Medicaid, and the Congressional Budget Office estimates that the tax reform law they passed in December 2017 will result in 13 million fewer people with health insurance by 2025; and

WHEREAS, in strong contrast, 16 Democrats in the U.S. Senate support S.B. 1804, to extend Medicare to everyone in the United States, and 122 U.S. representatives support H.R. 676, the expanded and improved Medicare for All Act, which includes long-term care to address the crisis expected when baby boomers retire:

RESOLVED, that the American Federation of Teachers and its affiliates will oppose federal efforts to repeal the Affordable Care Act; and

RESOLVED, that the AFT, working with the National Education Association, opposes all attempts to reduce the healthcare access provided by Medicare, Medicaid and the Affordable Care Act; and

RESOLVED, that the AFT condemns the tax reform law’s detrimental impact on healthcare access; and

RESOLVED, that the AFT and its affiliates will oppose efforts to reinstate coverage limitations, such as lifetime caps and those based on pre-existing conditions; and

RESOLVED, that the AFT will support open enrollment efforts to ensure all Americans have access and opportunity to enroll in insurance markets and subsidies opened through the Affordable Care Act; and

RESOLVED, that the AFT and its affiliates will support state-level strategies to protect essential health benefits and stabilize individual insurance markets created through the Affordable Care Act; and

RESOLVED, that the AFT and its affiliates will advocate for continuity of the Medicaid expansion at the federal level, and support state efforts to enact expanded Medicaid programs and oppose Medicaid waivers that impose restrictions on access; and

RESOLVED, that the AFT and its affiliates will support strategies at the federal level to stabilize individual insurance markets created through the Affordable Care Act and maintain the individual mandate; and

RESOLVED, that the AFT, working with the National Education Association, calls for improving the healthcare safety net, including protecting and improving Medicare, Medicaid and the Affordable Care Act; and

RESOLVED, that the AFT reaffirms that the most sensible and cost-effective solution for health coverage is a single-payer system modeled after the federal Medicare system, such as that proposed by S.B. 1804 and H.R. 676; and

RESOLVED, that the AFT will educate and mobilize its members and our broader community to support universal healthcare coverage.