As a potential government shutdown looms, Virginia Democrats in Congress are rallying around a proposal to protect access to health care for tens of thousands of Virginians.
That’s not particularly newsy since Democrats for months have been fighting back against the Republican assault on our social safety net. What makes the current policy fight more interesting is that Democrats actually have some leverage over the GOP. Republicans control both chambers of Congress and the White House, and conservatives need Democratic support in the US Senate to help them avoid a shutdown.
At issue is whether to extend federal subsidies that allow millions of Americans access to health care, or let them lapse. Seems like it should be a no brainer, even for ostensibly pro-business Republicans. After all, businesses can’t exploit workers if they’re too sick to show up for the job.
In Virginia, 47,000 people would lose health care if the tax credits expire, according to the Virginia State Corporation Commission, and many more would be forced to pay thousands of dollars more per year for the same plans. Among those impacted would be countless working people and small business owners who rely on those credits to get health care.
If you get your coverage through the marketplace and rely on the tax credits to make your plan affordable, you can see how much more you’d pay without the credits using this calculator from KFF.
Lester Johnson, an owner of Mama J’s restaurant in Richmond, said being able to access ACA plans with the help of the tax credits means he and his staff can access preventative care and make regular doctor’s visits. He said he’s worried about what would happen to his business and his employees if the tax credits went away.
“Times are already tough,” Johnson said on a Monday press call with reporters. “We cannot afford to lose our health care.”
Republicans say they’re going after fraud without offering specific examples of the kinds of fraud they are talking about. And some vulnerable Republicans — in a naked attempt to stay in power without angering their constituents — are calling for a one-year extension of the tax credits until after their elections.
Democrats aren’t having it. And they are calling for the tax credits to be made permanent as part of the negotiations over funding the government to avoid a shutdown.
The political intrigue here is hard to ignore. It’s easy to imagine how more people would blame Republicans for a shutdown than they would Democrats, which could help sway voters heading to the polls this fall.
US Rep. Jennifer McClellan said on a press call Monday that Republicans have cut Democrats out of the policy making process since President Donald Trump returned to office. “We’re not in charge,” she said.
“They want to say, ‘If there’s a shutdown, it’s Democrats’ fault,’” McClellan said. “But the blame lays squarely at their feet.”
On Tuesday, that stance became harder to argue with: Just one day after agreeing to a meeting with Democratic congressional leaders to discuss a spending bill, Trump canceled the meeting, pushing us closer to a shutdown.
