Skip to main content
National Disability Navigator Resource Collaborative

AAHD Logo
  • Home
  • About Us
    • Official Partners
    • Friends of the NDNRC
    • Community Outreach Collaboratives
  • Conversations
    • Ask a Question
    • Blog
    • News to Use
    • FAQ
    • Archived Newsletters
  • NDNRC Materials
    • Disability Guide
    • Fact Sheets
    • Medicaid Social Media Toolkit
    • Statement on ACA
    • Webinars & Presentations
  • Resources & Links
    • Disability Specific
    • Mental & Behavioral Health
    • Populations with Special Health Care Needs
    • Marketplace and Medicare
    • Marketplace and Medicaid
    • Enrollment: Overview
    • Enrollment Statistics
    • ACA Resources: Government
    • ACA Enrollment Resources
  • Contact Us
You are here: Home / Blog / Graham-Cassidy Bill Introduced

Graham-Cassidy Bill Introduced

September 13, 2017 by NDNRC

Today, Senators Graham (R-SC) and Cassidy (R-LA) introduced their bill to repeal and the replace the Affordable Care Act (ACA). Graham-Cassidy would essentially take all the money the federal government spends on Medicaid, premium tax credits, etc. and give that money to the states in the form of a block grant which states could then use to design health care plans for each state. The Senators released a section-by-section analysis of the bill which summarizes its provisions and a formula description which explains how the amount of the block grants will be calculated.

As was the case with the prior repeal and replace bills in the House and Senate, we believe that Graham-Cassidy fails to preserve the protections the ACA provided for people with disabilities. In fact, in many ways Graham-Cassidy is worse than the prior repeal and replace bills were. Presumably, under Graham-Cassidy, a state could receive waivers and enact a system which allows insurance companies to deny coverage for pre-existing conditions, charge more to these individuals or restrict access to many essential health benefits. The block grants would also result in drastic cuts to the Medicaid program upon which many people with disabilities rely for their health coverage. For these reasons, the American Association on Health and Disability (the lead partner for the NDNRC) opposes Graham-Cassidy and urges Congress to reject it.

You can view the NDNRC statement on health reform which we released after the election last November which includes the provisions of the ACA which we believe are vital to people with disabilities. In the statement entitled “Preserve the Protections Provided by the Affordable Care Act,” we call on Congress and the Administration to protect provisions in the ACA which have benefited people with disabilities.

Some additional statements from organizations opposing Graham-Cassidy are as follows:

  • NDNRC Partner: Disability Rights Education and Defense Fund (DREDF)
  • NDNRC Partner: National Multiple Sclerosis Society
  • NDNRC Partner: The Arc
  • Center on Budget and Policy Priorities
  • Families USA
  • National Health Council
  • National Health Law Program

* This post was updated on September 19, 2017 to include more details on the bill and add more statements from organizations

Filed Under: Blog

Conversations

  • Ask a Question
  • Blogging About

Get Email Updates

News

CMS Issues Final Enrollment Snapshot

With the completion of Open Enrollment Year 8 (OE8) for the federally facilitated marketplace, CMS … Read More »

  • Maryland Opens COVID SEP
  • New Year, New Medicaid Outreach Project

Blog

New Year, New Medicaid Outreach Project

State-Based Marketplace OE8 Deadlines

Thankful for Medicaid

Newsletters

January 15, 2021

CMS ISSUES FINAL ENROLLMENT SNAPSHOT With the completion of Open Enrollment Year 8 (OE8) for the … [Read More...]

  • January 8, 2021
  • December 18, 2020

In Cooperation

  • The NDNRC is currently a funded project of the American Association on Health and Disability (AAHD) and was initially funded by a grant from the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation (RWJF)
Get quick answers about Obamacare laws and the Health Insurance Marketplace

Contact Information

American Association on Health and Disability (AAHD)
110 N. Washington Street, Suite 407
Rockville, MD 20850
(301) 545-6140
www.aahd.us  |  Email
Privacy Policy

Copyright © 2021 NDNRC · All Rights Reserved · Powered by All Saints Media