Newly minted interim chair of the House Budget Committee, Rep. Diane Black of Tennessee, touted on Saturday the Republican Party’s plan to repeal Obamacare as its first issue of business in the 115th Congress. Black also ripped congressional Democrats for trying to “scare” the public with conservatives’ intentions to rescind President Obama’s legacy achievement.
“Now, the new Congress you elected has only been in office for a week and already, you’re hearing Democrats in Washington use all kinds of scare tactics. After so many broken promises, it’s all they have left, really,” Black said in the weekly GOP address. “But when they try to scare you, I ask you to keep one thing in mind: remember these are the same people who promised you their plan would lower premiums — the same people who promised it wouldn’t raise taxes on the middle class and who promised that if you like your plan, you can keep it.”
Black said the reality of Obamacare is that it has led to 63 percent premium hikes in her home state this year, while deductibles have also shot up. In addition, 73 of the state’s 95 countries only give enrollees a single option to choose from, making it a “monopoly.”
“Now I’ve been a nurse for more than 40 years, but you don’t need a degree in health care to know that Obamacare is failing,” Black said in the GOP weekly address. “So this week, Congress took the first steps to repeal Obamacare — but that doesn’t mean a return to the status quo.”
Republican lawmakers are working to rescind and replace the Affordable Care Act because it is what the people said they wanted on Election Day, Black said, referring to Trump’s campaign message and victory on Nov. 8.
Black promised those who have enrolled for Obamacare will not lose their coverage overnight, but that there will be a transition period so that “no one has the rug pulled from underneath them.”
The GOP’s reform to healthcare policies will allow people to buy insurance across states lines and protect those with pre-existing conditions, she said.
“For me, this issue is all too personal. As a nurse, I’ve spent decades watching the impact of healthcare decisions in Washington on my patients’ faces and in their billing statements. This isn’t about slogans and scare tactics — it’s about people lives’ and their bottom lines,” Black finished.
