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The House of Represenatives is expected to vote on the American Health Care Act — the GOP’s bid to repeal and replace the Affordable Care Act — on Thursday, March 23. Professor Tom Dennison, an expert in health care, offers insight on this new legislation.

“The proposal that has been put forth as the promised ‘Repeal and Replace Obamacare’ is a serious step backward in the history of health policy.  This proposal is regressive; it burdens Americans who are lower income and elderly far more than the wealthy and the young.  It will create a significant barrier for women (and men) to access family planning.  In a short sighted manner, it eliminates substantial funding for public health services, upon which we rely to improve and maintain health.  This proposal does nothing to reduce the underlying cost of care and would likely damage an already financially fragile health care system.

In an effort to gain votes in the House of Representatives, it includes a proposal specific to New York that would shift Medicaid spending from counties to the State which is nothing more than a shell game designed to entice upstate representatives to vote for this flawed piece of legislation.     Obamacare  extended coverage to many people across the country and began some efforts  in the direction of population health, promising to address health care spending in the long run.  While Obamacare is not perfect, it represents the best that our currently heavily partisan political environment could muster.  We should work  with the successes we have had to improve access to care for all Americans.”