Ernst voted for health care repeal law that ‘would allow insurers to charge higher premiums to those with pre-existing conditions

Independent fact checks of recent ads from two different Iowa media outlets this week confirmed Senator Joni Ernst’s toxic record of voting to gut coverage protections for Iowans with pre-existing conditions from being discriminated against by insurance companies. Both KCRG and the Cedar Rapids Gazette report that Senator Ernst backed a toxic GOP plan that would have allowed insurance companies to discriminate against Iowans with pre-existing conditions.

Nearly half a million Iowans have a pre-existing medical condition, and Ernst herself has admitted that under the reckless plans she’s supported, “insurance companies would be allowed to offer plans out there that don’t cover certain things.” Ernst has repeatedly voted to gut critical health care protections, which would spike insurance costs for Iowans “who are less healthy… if they could purchase it at all.”

Iowa Democratic Party spokesperson Mandy McClure released the following statement:

“While Senator Ernst tries to mislead Iowans, the facts are clear about her record on health care. Ernst sided with corporate special interest donors and GOP leaders in Washington when she backed an effort to gut key consumer protections and put Iowans with pre-existing conditions at risk of being discriminated against by insurance companies.”

Read more about Senator Ernst’s toxic record of voting against Iowans with pre-existing conditions:

Cedar Rapids Gazette: Fact Checker: Ad’s health care claims against Joni Ernst mostly accurate

  • The House passed the American Health Care Act, HR 1628, on May 4, 2017. That legislation, a plan to repeal and replace Obamacare, would have allowed insurers to set premiums based on a patient’s health status if that patient had let his or her coverage lapse, the Congressional Budget Office reported.

  • “Community-rated premiums would rise over time, and people who are less healthy (including those with preexisting or newly acquired medical conditions) would ultimately be unable to purchase comprehensive nongroup health insurance at premiums comparable to those under current law …” the office determined.

  • Ernst was among 51 Senate Republicans who voted July 25, 2017, to begin debate on the House-passed legislation.

  • Ernst was one of 49 Republicans who voted for the skinny repeal July 28, 2017.

  • But Ernst also wasn’t one of the three senators — John McCain, Susan Collins and Lisa Murkowski — widely reported to be preventing passage of other bills, such as the Graham/Cassidy/Heller/Johnson amendment condemned by groups like the AARP for undermining protections for preexisting conditions. This indicates she had signaled support for Senate repeal efforts.

KCRG: I9 Fact Check: Iowa Voices claims against Sen. Ernst (VIDEO)

  • CLAIM: “She voted to allow insurance companies to discriminate against people like Ashley (those with pre-existing conditions).”

  • ANALYSIS: This statement comes from Ernst’s vote for the American Health Care Act of 2017, a failed effort to repeal and replace part of the Affordable Health Care Act, known as Obamacare.

  • …the bill also allowed states to apply for waivers that would allow insurers to charge higher premiums to those with pre-existing conditions, while those who are healthy pay lower premiums. The Congressional Budget Office review noted that would let average premiums lower as younger, healthier people buy insurance. The review also noted, “people who are less healthy (including those with preexisting or newly acquired medical conditions) would ultimately be unable to purchase comprehensive non-group health insurance at premiums comparable to those under current law, if they could purchase it at all.”

  • [The bill] would have let insurers charge more to those with pre-existing health conditions. Right or wrong, that different treatment fits the definition of discrimination.

  • This claim gets an “A”.

###