Pallone Statement on Gov. Christie’s Veto of NJ Health Care Exchange Law

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:
Thursday, December 6, 2012


WASHINGTON. D.C.—Congressman Frank Pallone, Jr. (NJ-06) released the following statement today in response to New Jersey Governor Chris Christie’s decision to veto the health care exchange law passed earlier this year by the state legislature. A critical part of the Affordable Care Act includes the creation of health care exchanges to establish a market place for the purchase of affordable health insurance plans. States were meant to tailor their specific needs to a state-based exchange, but those who opt out will be obligated to have the federal government run an exchange for them.

“I am deeply disappointed by Governor Christie’s decision to veto Senate Bill 2135, the bill establishing New Jersey’s state-based health care exchange. By vetoing the bill, Governor Christie has abdicated the critical responsibility and foregone the opportunity for our state to establish an exchange program tailored directly to New Jersey’s specific needs.

“Governor Christie had an opportunity to allow New Jersey to create a health care exchange that would have been unique to our state, which has been at the forefront of so many important health care innovations, including many components that were instrumental in the creation of the Affordable Care Act. The Affordable Care Act was designed to give all Americans access to affordable health care. It also established a system that can be more precise to individual health care needs and choices, which is why state-based health care exchanges are so helpful in empowering individuals to make the best decisions for them. Under the law, states that chose not to create their own state-based exchange will be forced to participate in a larger and less targeted federal exchange, which will provide good insurance plans, but will not be targeted directly to New Jerseyans.

“The decision by Governor Christie to veto our state’s health care exchange squandered New Jersey’s right to self determination and has put the state in a position where we can no longer specify a plan that fits our needs. Governor Christie had ample time, opportunity and resources to create a viable plan for New Jersey to have fully functioning exchanges up and running in the time prescribe by the law, but instead he chose a path that lessens our home-grown influence over our health care.”

Rep. Pallone Calls on Governor Christie to Set Up New Jersey's Health Care Exchanges

WASHINGTON, D.C.—Today, Congressman Frank Pallone, Jr. (NJ-06) issued a letter to New Jersey Governor Chris Christie urging him to establish a New Jersey-based health care exchange as mandated by the Affordable Care Act.

The Affordable Care Act, signed into law in 2010 and upheld by the U.S. Supreme Court this past June, requires states to create health care exchanges to create a marketplace for Americans to purchase health insurance.

The deadline for states to announce their intention to establish their own individual exchanges is tomorrow, Friday, November 16, 2012. Governor Christie has yet to sign the New Jersey Health Benefit Exchange Act passed by the state legislature last month, which creates the states health insurance exchange and is designed to meet the specific needs of New Jersey residents.

The Affordable Care Act’s deadline for the states’ to announce their intention to create health insurance exchanges was established to allow states time get the system up and running in time for the law’s implementation in October of 2014. If states fail to establish their own exchanges, the federal government will require states’ residents to participate in a federal health insurance exchanges that is not designed for individual states.

The following are excerpts from the letter sent by Pallone to Governor Christie:

The time has come for you to take action on behalf of the people of New Jersey and establish a New Jersey-based health insurance exchange…

When Congress passed the Affordable Care Act, it intended for each state to set up its own exchange and gave states the flexibility to tailor their exchanges to the needs of their citizens. To date, New Jersey has received nearly $9 million in grants from the federal government to plan and establish a state-run exchange…

If New Jersey cedes the opportunity to create its own exchange, our residents will miss out on a number of benefits. First and foremost, a state-based exchange would allow the state to determine which insurers can participate in the exchange, ensuring that only those offering the highest quality for the best value are allowed to participate. Furthermore, a state-based exchange could set requirements for participating insurance companies above and beyond those set by the federal law, making sure that the unique health needs of New Jerseyans are fully met…

With the deadlines to act on establishing our exchange quickly approaching, further delay in signing this legislation threatens New Jerseyans’ access to the best quality and most affordable health insurance.

Pallone serves as the senior Democrat on the House Energy and Commerce Subcommittee on Health and was a primary author of the Affordable Care Act in the House.

Affordable Care Act, Health Insurance Reform, Works As It Approaches 2nd Anniversary

I wrote the following article appearing today over at NewJerseyNewsroom.com:

March 23rd marks the second anniversary of the Affordable Care Act (ACA) and while many on the “right” attack its passage as being an attempt to “socialize” America’s health care system and an affront to their personal freedom of choice to decide what’s best for them, it is important to remember what it will mean to millions of seniors, children, small business owners and the rest of us if the Affordable Care Act law is watered down or abolished.

 For seniors, the ACA has meant that they will not have to worry about falling back into the prescription drug “donut hole.” It means keeping seniors healthy by giving them preventive care without a co-pay or a deductible. And it means that 32.5 million seniors received one or more free preventive care services, including an annual wellness visit. Screenings for bone density, diabetes and certain cancers were part of these wellness visits. All of which means that health problems can be detected and treated sooner.

 For children, the ACA ends some of the worst insurance company abuses, such as denying children care because of a pre-existing condition. As many as 17 million children under the age of 18 have some type of pre-existing condition. It eliminates cost-sharing for preventive health services and requires insurers to cover, at no cost, comprehensive screenings and preventative care for children as defined by the “Bright Futures” standards issued by the American Academy of Pediatrics, including well-child visits. The ACA also extends funding for the Children’s Health Insurance Program (CHIP) through September 30, 2015. Without the Affordable Care Act, many states would have cut funding to this program that provides critical services to children.

For small business owners, the ACA lowers health costs for small businesses by allowing them to band together in health exchanges that will be created in each state. This will allow small business owners to receive the same rates as large companies, saving them on average 18 percent on premiums. The ACA also lowers the cost of providing health care by providing tax breaks to small businesses. Currently, 4 million small businesses have access to tax credits to help with the cost of health premiums. This in turn means that small businesses now have an opportunity to offer their employees coverage, and they do not have to put the costs of providing health care over hiring more workers.

As for the rest of us the benefits provided by the Affordable Health Care Act may not be as obvious but they are no less significant. Individuals no longer need to feel “job locked” because of fears of losing health coverage due preexisting health conditions of themselves or loved ones. They will have access to quality care regardless, giving them the freedom and security to pursue any job that they may want, which in turn will help boost our economy. And beginning next year, the ACA will bar insurers from establishing lifetime coverage limits on the dollar value of coverage. In other words, if you have a catastrophic health event, insurance companies cannot cap payouts leaving individuals without coverage.

 Furthermore, the ACA has provided the government with the necessary tools to crack down on the waste, fraud and abuse of Medicare and Medicaid. In the past two years the government has recovered over $8 billion through fraud prevention and enforcement that has helped offset the cost of these programs for the American public.

 The Affordable Care Act works. Today millions of Americans have access to affordable health cover that they did not have access to before. It must be protected from those that wish to play political games that will take away all the benefits that so many are currently receiving as a result of it.