Wednesday night, the Senate participated in something called a "vote-a-rama." Basically, they spent hours quickly and efficiently voting on a ton of measures—including some related to health care. In this session, senators began the process of dismantling the Affordable Care Act (also known as the ACA or Obamacare). Confused? I don't blame you. The whole process is pretty complex, so we've broken it down into eight major things you should know.
The Senate didn't invent this "vote-a-rama" thing this week. In fact, it's something of a tradition. Senators gather—and stay up super late—to go through a ton of different measures and vote on them. The senators can't enact any new laws right now. But they can approve "budget resolutions." (Which, confusingly enough, have nothing to do with the federal budget.) More on that in the next point!
If budget resolutions aren't laws—and if they have nothing to do with the federal budget—then what are they? Well, they're basically a way of starting the process of drafting and passing new laws. Any budget resolution that gets approved during this "vote-a-rama" is free from the risk of being filibustered (in other words, stalled) by the opposing party.
To be clear: Obamacare wasn't repealed while you were sleeping Wednesday night. (That would take several weeks, at least.) All the Senate did was pass a budget resolution to start the dismantling process. Now, House and Senate committees have 2-7 weeks to draft the legislation that will overturn the ACA. In other words, the Senate just took its first official step toward repealing Obamacare. But that's all it was—a step.
If you had any favorite parts of Obamacare, they likely won't be included in the new plan. Some senators proposed several amendments trying to preserve elements of the ACA—but all of them were voted down. One of these amendments would have kept people with pre-existing conditions from losing their insurance. There was also an amendment that continued requiring insurance companies to cover the cost of contraception.
Unfortunately, many of those amendments would have helped women access healthcare services. If insurance companies don't have to cover contraception costs, 55 million women could be left without no-copay birth control. Plus, many insurance companies view pregnancy as a pre-existing condition. That means pregnant women could be at risk of having much higher premiums—or being denied health insurance entirely.
Remember, these changes aren't being implemented overnight. This was just the first of many steps legislators needs to take to overturn the ACA—and ideally, replace it with a new plan. In a press conference held yesterday, president-elect Donald Trump said he wanted to dismantle Obamacare and replace it with a new plan almost immediately—perhaps within the same day or hour. This echoes public and private statements made by a number of senators—including Kentucky senator Rand Paul—who are concerned about the ramifications of upending American healthcare access without implementing an adequate replacement. (Note: Not everyone voting to repeal the ACA is a Republican. The Congress is just Republican-controlled.)
If legislators were to overturn the ACA without putting another plan in place, they would be engaging in something critics call "repeal and delay." This tactic could lead to an estimated 7 million people losing health insurance coverage and nearly 8,400 people dying as a result—in 2017 alone.
The goal of the ACA was to make health insurance affordable and accessible for everyone. Obamacare insured more than 16 million new people, leaving only 10.4 percent of Americans uninsured. Under the ACA, the consumer costs of some prescription drugs were significantly reduced or eliminated—but monthly premiums went up for many Americans. In his farewell speech earlier this week, Barack Obama said he'd welcome an Obamacare replacement plan that makes health coverage more affordable and accessible. In fact, he said he'd even publicly support such a plan, if presented.
Again, this is just a first step. We can't know for sure whether the Republicans plan to "repeal and replace" or "repeal and delay." And we can only make educated guesses when it comes to what the replacement healthcare plan will be. All we know right now is that the Senate has laid the groundwork for the ACA to be officially overturned—and that women are at risk of paying higher costs to access certain services than they had to under Obamacare.
If you want to make sure that Congress doesn't repeal the Affordable Care Act without a suitable replacement already in place, there's still time to make your voice heard. SELF's resources on finding activist opportunities and getting involved in policy decisions are great places to start. If you're passionate about women's access to reproductive health care in particular, you can also consider: donating to the Center for Reproductive Rights, volunteering for NARAL Pro-Choice America, donating to the Reproductive Health Access Project, or volunteering for Planned Parenthood. Other organizations can help families in need access affordable childcare, job training, and much-needed food and household supplies.
Related:
- Trump Eyes Anti-Vaxxer Robert Kennedy Jr. For Vaccine Safety Committee
- Jeff Sessions Considers Roe V. Wade Unconstitutional, But Will Respect It Anyway
- Here’s What Would Happen If The Affordable Care Act Were Repealed
Also: Paul Ryan Says GOP Will Defund Planned Parenthood Along With Obamacare
