About 24 million people would lose Obamacare if it is repealed as congressional Republicans hope, according to a new report.
The report found that 14.5 people would lose coverage with a repeal of the Medicaid expansion and another 8.8 million people would not have marketplace or other individual insurance. Another 700,000 people would lose insurance through their jobs, according to the report from the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, a charity focusing on health.
Researchers also looked at what a repeal of Obamacare would mean for federal and state spending on healthcare.
“Between 2017 and 2026, following a potential repeal, federal healthcare spending would decrease by $927 billion; however, state spending would increase by $68.5 billion over the same period as more people receive uncompensated care,” the foundation said.
Since states would have to cover the cost of people who receive uncompensated charity care, they would have to pay more for healthcare, the report noted.
The report focuses only on what happens if Obamacare is repealed and not replaced with another system. The House has yet to reach consensus on a replacement plan. A task force hopes to put out a plan this summer to act as a template to be used by a Republican president to repeal Obamacare if the party wins the White House in November.
