Great Health Care Provisions in Congress’ Plan to “Build Back Better”
We’re delighted to see that the US House of Representatives is aiming to include several fantastic health care provisions in the $3.5 trillion Build Back Better budget reconciliation bill!
While there’s still work to do to pass the legislation through both the House and Senate, we’re very excited to see that four health care priorities championed by Cover Texas Now are in the current proposal:
Permanently closing the health coverage gap by providing a health coverage option to uninsured adults in Texas, Florida, Georgia, and the handful of other states that rejected Medicaid expansion.
Allowing children to remain enrolled in their Medicaid or CHIP health insurance for 12 continuous months.
Allowing moms to keep their Medicaid health insurance for a full 12 months after the pregnancy.
Continuing the extra financial assistance that Congress recently provided to slash the price of insurance on HealthCare.Gov.
The draft legislation also includes other popular health care provisions, including boosting Medicaid funding for home care provided to people with disabilities and expanding Medicare to cover seniors’ vision, dental, and hearing needs.
As we recently explained on KUT, we’re particularly fired up about the proposal to permanently close the coverage gap in states like Texas that have blocked Medicaid expansion. Closing the coverage gap means that cashiers, janitors, delivery drivers, and other people in low wage jobs will finally have a way to get consistent, affordable health care to catch cancer before it spreads, get healthy before they become pregnant, access mental health services, manage their diabetes, or address other health needs.
It means taking a big step towards racial equity, considering the majority of people in the health coverage gap are people of color.
And it means that Texans like Miss Millie, featured in this new video, will not be taken from us so soon.
We’re glad to work with so many people who are raising their voices to urge Congress to permanently close the health coverage gap. For example:
Organizations in our Cover Texas Now coalition have been speaking out.
Nearly 400 groups signed this Southerners for Medicaid Expansion letter to the US Senate
Several major foundations and organizations signed this statement organized by the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation.
We urge you to raise your voice as well by helping us share the video about Miss Millie and calling on Congress to permanently close the coverage gap:
Thank you for helping us keep up the momentum to make sure Texans get the health care we need!