CT, NY outline state impact of House ACA replacement plan

Governors of Connecticut and New York have published estimates of the impact on residents and budgets in their states of the American Health Care Act (AHCA) that passed the House Budget Committee today. Connecticut estimates that the AHCA could cost the state $1 billion per year after full implementation in 2020 and would cost seniors in the insurance exchange an extra $4,799/year in premiums. New York estimates the state budget impact at $2.4 billion by SFY 2020-21 and over a million New Yorkers would face “significant loss of health care”. These estimates followed Monday’s release of estimated AHCA impact by the Congressional Budget Office. CBO estimates that the AHCA would reduce the federal deficit by $337 billion between 2017 and 2026 but leave 14 million more Americans uninsured next year, rising to 24 million extra uninsured by 2026. CBO expects that private insurance premiums would rise for the next two years but then begin to decrease. Other ERC Governors released statements about the AHCA including Delaware, Pennsylvania, and Rhode Island. HHS Secretary Price and CMS Administrator Verma issued a letter yesterday to Governors affirming the importance of Medicaid’s state-federal partnership and outlining their plans for reform. Initiatives include more efficient program management including waivers and state plan amendments, innovative approaches to increase employment and community engagement, aligning Medicaid with private insurance policies for non-disabled adults, reasonable timelines and processes for Home and Community-Based Services Transformation, and more tools for states to address the opioid epidemic.