WASHINGTON — With the help of 17 Republicans, none from Georgia, the U.S. House of Representatives on Thursday signed off on a bill that would extend the expiring Affordable Care Act coverage subsidies for three more years.
The bill now goes to the Senate, where it is unlikely to be approved in its current form. But a bipartisan group of senators is working on an alternative proposal in hopes of coming up with a plan that can pass both chambers.
U.S. Rep. Austin Scott, R-Tifton, said he voted against the bill because he believes the Affordable Care Act has contributed to rising health insurance costs and the subsidies, passed during the coronavirus pandemic, merely mask the issues.
“If we continue to give the insurance industry billions of dollars of additional subsidies, we’re not reducing the cost, right?” Scott said. “We’re shifting the cost, but we’re not reducing the cost.”
House Democrats unanimously supported the bill, saying their concern is the estimated 22 million people nationwide whose premiums increased solely because these tax credits were allowed to expire at the end of 2025.
About 1.5 million Georgians, or around 13% of the state’s population, purchased insurance on the Obamacare exchanges last year. That number was already down by 200,000 at the end of open enrollment in December.
About 460,000 Georgians are expected to drop health insurance purchased on the exchange as a result of the expiring subsidies and other changes to health care laws, according to health research organization KFF. U.S. Sen. Jon Ossoff has made the issue central to his reelection campaign, calling out his Republican opponents for refusing to support extending the subsidies.
That includes U.S. Reps. Buddy Carter and Mike Collins, who both voted against the bill Thursday.
“This is a life-or-death question for many Georgians,” Ossoff said during a news conference before the vote. “This is whether or not Georgians have and can afford health insurance. There is little more fundamental than that, and that is why I am ramping up the pressure on my opponents to change their position.”
How members of Georgia’s U.S. House delegation voted on extending the Affordable Care Act subsidies, H.R. 1834
“Yes”
- U.S. Rep. Sanford Bishop, D-Albany
- U.S. Rep. Hank Johnson, D-Lithonia
- U.S. Rep. Lucy McBath, D-Marietta
- U.S. Rep. David Scott, D-Atlanta
- U.S. Rep. Nikema Williams, D-Atlanta
“No”
- U.S. Rep. Rick Allen, R-Augusta
- U.S. Rep. Buddy Carter, R-St. Simons Island
- U.S. Rep. Andrew Clyde, R-Athens
- U.S. Rep. Mike Collins, R-Jackson
- U.S. Rep. Brian Jack, R-Peachtree City
- U.S. Rep. Barry Loudermilk, R-Cassville
- U.S. Rep. Rich McCormick, R-Suwanee
- U.S. Rep. Austin Scott, R-Tifton
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