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New Data Show Cost Of Administration's Efforts To Sabotage Healthcare Markets

Last updated on Friday, November 2, 2018

(INDIANAPOLIS) - As open enrollment begins and Hoosiers can start signing up for 2019 health insurance coverage through the Healthcare.gov marketplaces, new data from the non-partisan Kaiser Family Foundation show that, nationally, benchmark health care premiums for 2019 are, on average, 16 percent higher than they would have been without the ongoing sabotage by the Administration.

U.S. Senator Joe Donnelly has vocally opposed efforts by the Administration to undermine health care markets, including the recent "junk" plans that are not required to cover Americans with pre-existing conditions.

Donnelly said, "My focus has been on finding bipartisan solutions that would make health care more affordable and accessible, and to continue the protections in place for Hoosiers with a pre-existing condition. The Administration should be working with a bipartisan coalition in Congress to achieve that goal, instead of taking repeated actions that are undermining health care markets and leading to higher premiums for Hoosiers and families across the country."

Last week, the Administration released a new rule that would make it easier for states to bring "junk" plans into their markets. Donnelly has previously stated his opposition to and voted against, short-term "junk" plans as they are not required to cover pre-existing conditions and can have caps on coverage. The Administration's rule could make it more difficult and expensive for those with pre-existing conditions to purchase plans on the health insurance marketplaces.

According to the Kaiser Family Foundation, approximately 30 percent of Hoosiers under the age of 65 (more than 1.1 million people) have pre-existing conditions that could have left them with no coverage or facing higher rates before the Affordable Care Act prohibited such discrimination.

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