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From YouTube: PBPC testimony before Committee on Fiscal Stability and Intergovernmental Cooperation 2-27-2017
Description
Jeff Garis, Executive Director of the Pennsylvania Budget and Policy Center testifies before Philadelphia City Council's Committee on Fiscal Stability and Intergovernmental Cooperation on the potential impact of the proposed repeal of the Affordable Care Act on Pennsylvanians.
The hearing took place on Monday, February 27, 2017.
A
I
want
to
first
say
thank
you
to
president
Clark
and
also
to
members
of
council
for
this
opportunity.
My
name
is
Jeff
Jarrett
and
I'm.
The
outreach
and
engagement
director
for
the
Pennsylvania
Budget
and
Policy
Center
budget
policy
center
Foster's
broadly
shared
prosperity,
economic,
racial
and
gender
equity
and
environmental
sustainability
in
Pennsylvania
by
means
of
nonpartisan
research
policy,
analysis,
public
education
and
advocacy
and
coalition
building,
since
January
Congress
has
been
moving
slowly
to
repeal
the
Affordable
Care
Act
of
2010,
sometimes
referred
to
as
Obamacare.
That
effort
has
been
slowed
by
substantial
opposition
to
this
action.
A
Opposition
that
has
been
encouraged
by
a
detailed
look
at
the
impact
of
repeal
on
the
lives
of
Americans
is
uncertain
about
the
repeal
effort.
We
do
not
know
whether
any
repeat
repeal
legislation
will
actually
be
enacted.
This
year,
we
don't
know
which
parts
of
the
ACA
Congress
may
keep
and
which
it
may
repeal.
We
do
not
know
whether
Congress
will
enact
some
kind
of
replacement
for
the
ACA
either.
At
the
same
time
as
repeal
or
later,
we
do
not
know
what
that
replacement
could
look
like.
A
In
light
of
that
uncertainty,
what
we,
as
policy
analyst
can
do
is
put
forward
our
analysis
of
the
cost
of
repeal,
based
on
our
best
guess
of
what
repeal
will
look
like
kb
pc
produced
an
analysis
of
the
impact
of
repeal
in
pennsylvania
last
month.
Our
analysis
was
based
on
the
most
recent
repeal
legislation
that
passed
Congress
but
was
vetoed
by
president
obama
in
2016,
because
there
is
almost
total
uncertainty
about
what
a
replacement
would
or
could
look
like.
A
We
did
not
analyze
any
replacement,
but
simply
looked
at
what
happens
in
central
parts
of
the
ACA
that
enabled
people
is
secure.
Insurance
are
repealed.
What
we
found
is
simply
horrifying,
repito
two
key
parts
of
the
ACA
Medicaid
expansion
and
the
tax
credit
subsidies
for
insurance
on
the
health
care
exchanges
would
cause
more
than
1.1
million
Pennsylvanians
to
lose
the
health
insurance
they
receive.
Through
these
programs,
an
additional
3,200,
sorry,
3525,
premature
deaths
will
occur
each
year
as
a
result.
A
Our
best
estimate
is
that
over
200,000
Philadelphians
will
lose
health
insurance
as
a
result
of
repeal
of
the
ACA
about.
Two-Thirds
of
them
will
lose
their
health
insurance
as
soon
as
the
repeal
of
Medicaid
expansion
takes
effect,
with
the
remainder
becoming
uninsured
by
the
end
of
the
second
year
after
repealed,
an
additional
778
people
will
die
prematurely
each
year
in
Philadelphia.
Most
of
those
who
lose
insurance
will
be
people
who
have
recently
secured
it
through
either
expanded
Medicaid
or
through
receiving
tax
credits
to
purchase
health
insurance
on
the
new
health
exchanges
or
marketplaces.
A
However,
the
kinds
of
repeal
contemplated
by
Congress
will
likely
throw
the
entire
individual
health
insurance
market
into
chaos
among
the
over
200,000
Philadelphians,
who
will
lose
their
insurance
will
be
some
who
have
purchased
health
insurance
in
the
individual
market
place
for
years
and
without
any
subsidy.
We
estimate
that
over
10,000
of
those
people
will
find
health
and
will
find
their
current
health
insurance
unaffordable.
Due
to
the
effects
of
the
ACA
repeal
optimal
state
Y
will
see
their
revenues
declined
by
almost
1.6
billion
annually.
Doctors
will
see
a
drop
of
500
million
in
yearly
revenue.
A
Some
hospitals
and
physicians
practices,
especially
in
urban
centers
and
rural
areas,
may
not
serve
philadelphia.
Hospitals
bring
in
about
twenty-five
percent
of
all
hospital
revenues
statewide
between
2013
and
2015.
The
revenues
of
philadelphia
hospitals
increased
by
900
million
if
their
loss
of
revenues
due
to
a
CA
repeal
is
proportionate
to
loss
of
revenue
statewide,
they
will
lose
400
million
dollars
annually,
but
Philadelphia
hospitals
may
suffer
more
because
they
care
for
many
patients
with
low
incomes
under
the
ACA.
A
The
rate
of
uncompensated
care
provided
by
Philadelphia
hospitals
declined
from
two-point-eight
percent
in
2013
22
point
four
percent
in
2015,
repeal
of
KCA
will
cost
over
50,000
Pennsylvania's
their
jobs
reduce
the
state's
gross
domestic
product
by
over
30
billion
and
cut
state
and
local
tax
revenues
by
1
billion
dollars.
Over
five
years
we
have
PV
pc
of
only
a
limited
capacity
to
make
projections
about
the
impact
of
ACA
repeal
on
the
economy
and
tax
revenues
in
philadelphia.
A
We
can
only
estimate
the
proportional
impact
of
ACA
repeal
on
the
city
based
on
its
share
of
the
state's
population
in
total
state
and
local
tax
revenues.
On
that
basis,
we
believe
the
repeal
of
the
ACA
will
call
it
philadelphia
in
the
neighborhood
of
5,000
jobs
and
50
million
dollars
in
tax
revenues.
Over
five
years,
repeal
of
the
ACA
will
add
over
1.4
billion
dollars
to
the
state
structural
deficit.
Unless
taxes
are
increased
to
come,
that
the
result
will
be
reduction
in
state
expenditures,
mainly
in
the
areas
of
Education
and
Human.
A
Services
Philadelphia
will
suffer
greatly
in
any
general
reduction
in
such
spending.
We
do
not
make
any
projections
based
on
any
replacement
of
the
ACA
by
another
proposal,
because
we
know
little
or
nothing
about
what
such
a
proposal
would.
Look
like
that's
my
testimony.
Thank
you.
Thank
you
puts
it
in
starker
non
so
that
night,
that's
why
we
entitled
it
devastation
death
and
deficits.
As
irony,
okay,.