AARP is urging senators to vote against the Republican healthcare bill and to “start from scratch” on new legislation.
The organization dedicated to representing Americans 50 years old and older said Tuesday it will blast its 38 million members online, through the media, and with direct alerts about any senator who votes in favor of the healthcare legislation, which is known as the Better Care Reconciliation Act.
“Under the BCRA, premiums and out of pocket costs for 50-64 year olds buying their own insurance would skyrocket, Medicaid coverage for millions of seniors and people with disabilities would be at risk and the fiscal sustainability of Medicare would be weakened,” AARP wrote in a news release.
Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., said Tuesday he will delay a vote on the healthcare bill until after senators return from the July 4 recess.
A growing list of GOP senators object to the legislation in its current form, many of them opposed to the cuts in growth to the Obamacare Medicaid expansion.
Republicans will try to reconstruct the bill this week and get a new score from the Congressional Budget Office.
The original CBO report, which AARP cited in opposing the Senate bill, would lead to 22 million fewer people insured than Obamacare by the end of a decade and would reduce the deficit by $321 billion.
In opposing the current draft of the bill, AARP says the legislation will “dramatically” increase healthcare costs for older Americans who purchase healthcare through an exchange.
The bill allows older Americans to be charged five times more than younger Americans, AARP said. Under current law, older Americans can already be charged three times more than younger Americans.
AARP also opposed a bill passed by the House that would repeal and replace parts of Obamacare.
