Spotted!

April 6, 2017

Dear Mr. Kaplan:

Thank you for contacting me about health care reform. I always appreciate hearing from the people whom I represent.

As you likely know, the Obamacare repeal and replacement known as the American Health Care Act (AHCA) was pulled from the House Floor schedule and will not be voted on.

In the past couple months, I have heard from and have met with many constituents who have spoken in favor of the Affordable Care Act (ACA), which created what is known as Obamacare. There are heartbreaking stories from both those helped and those hurt by Obamacare.

Prior to the recent mobilization, I heard from only a handful of constituents who supported the ACA, and the vast majority of my constituents have contacted me for years, pleading for relief from the harm Obamacare has caused them, their family, and friends.

continued...

Under Obamacare, the majority of Tennesseans have seen their premiums skyrocket, while major insurance companies are leaving our State. We simply cannot afford to keep Obamacare any longer.

The truth of the matter is that Obamacare is failing and collapsing. The facts are indisputable. The Congressional Budget Office (CBO) recently found the number of uninsured in 2026 would be 28 million, even if Obamacare were to somehow survive for that long. In 2015, 46% of those uninsured said health insurance was still too expensive even with Obamacare.

Often, it is said that 20 million people gained health insurance because of the Affordable Care Act (ACA), but in reality, many of those 20 million were forced onto Obamacare plans because their existing plans became too expensive or because they lost coverage altogether. The problem is that while a few million were helped, probably ten times as many Americans were hurt by Obamacare through higher premiums, fewer options, or limited or no coverage.

According to the New York Times, health care premiums increased by 25% in 2017. Obamacare cost Americans over $1 trillion in taxes, according to CBO. One third of all counties only have one insurer.

Even worse, no insurance companies will offer plans on the ACA Exchange (healthcare.gov) in our District next year. Sadly, now that Obamacare has not been repealed and will remain the law of the land for the foreseeable future, thousands of constituents who relied on the ACA Exchange will face having no insurance and having to pay a financial penalty, thanks to the Obamacare individual mandate.

Because of this crisis in my District and other regions of the Country, I and my colleagues from Tennessee have introduced the Health Care Options Act of 2017. This bill will allow Americans without health insurance options on the ACA Exchange to use their ACA subsidy to purchase any health insurance plan approved by their state. I hope Congress will act on this bill quickly.

As you know, President Obama and many of his top aides said repeatedly that the average family would save $2,500 a year under Obamacare, when in reality the exact opposite has happened. The following is a link to a recent Washington Times editorial titled, “Health Care in the Balance: If you’re saving $2,500 a year on Obamacare, raise your hand”: (link...). This editorial is an excellent summary of the problems with Obamacare.

If we do nothing, within a few years, the entire federal budget will be spent on Social Security, Medicaid, Medicare, and interest on our huge and ever-growing debt.

I am looking forward to working with House leadership in hopefully soon passing additional legislation that will increase competition, lower prices, and improve health care as soon as possible. I believe steps must be taken as soon as possible to reduce the federal government's role in our healthcare system.

Once again, I appreciate hearing from you. If I can ever be of service to you, your family or friends, please do not hesitate to let me know.

With kindest regards, I am

John J. Duncan, Jr.
Member of Congress

Any idea how many votes for/against Duncan in last election and how many total registered voters in the second congressional district did and didn't vote? Who keeps that data? Russia?