MENTAL HEALTH, MATERNITY CARE, ADDICTION SERVICES -- ALL GONE.
WITH ME, HOUSE MINORITY WHIP STENY HOYER.
YOU CAN SEE HIM, HERE 7 YEARS AGO STANDING BEHIND PRESIDENT
OBAMA AS HE SIGNED OBAMACARE INTO LAW.
HE JUST VOTED NO TODAY ON THE GOP BILL.
NICE TO SEE YOU, SIR. >> GRETA, GOOD TO BE WITH YOU.
>> LET ME ASK YOU SOME QUICK QUESTIONS.
THE PRESIDENT SAYS PREMIUMS ARE GOING DOWN.
HAVE YOU READ THE BILL AND IS THAT WHAT YOU UNDERSTAND?
>> I'VE READ THE BILL, BUT ALSO VERY IMPORTANTLY, I'VE READ THE
CBO REPORT THAT IS THE INDEPENDENT CONGRESSIONAL
ADVISOR ON FISCAL MATTERS, AND THEY SAY PREMIUMS ARE GOING UP
24 TO 29% FOR THE AVERAGE POLICYHOLDER.
SO, ANY SENSE THAT WHAT TRUMP REPRESENTED AS LOWER COSTS
CLEARLY IS NOT GOING TO HAPPEN IN THIS BILL.
FURTHERMORE, OF COURSE, HE SAID EVERYBODY WAS GOING TO HAVE
INSURANCE. CBO SAYS 24 MILLION PEOPLE
MINIMUM ARE GOING TO LOSE THEIR INSURANCE.
SO, FROM THOSE STANDPOINTS, THE TRUMPCARE BILL DID NOT
ACCOMPLISH WHAT HE PROMISED. >> ALL RIGHT.
YOU SAY THE CBO'S SCORE. I WAS UNDER THE UNDERSTANDING,
TELL ME IF I'M WRONG, ONE OF THE COMPLAINTS ABOUT THIS BY SOME ON
YOUR SIDE OF THE AISLE MAINLY, AND EVEN SENATOR GRAHAM IN THE
SENATE, IS THAT IT HADN'T BEEN SCORED.
IS THAT YOU TALKING ABOUT THE SCORE PREAMENDMENTS?
>> GRETA, THAT'S CORRECT. THE AMENDMENT HAS NOT YET BEEN
SCORED AND OF COURSE PAUL RYAN HAD REPRESENTED YEARS AGO AND
RECENTLY THAT WE SHOULDN'T CONSIDER A BILL THAT DIDN'T HAVE
A CBO SCORE. THIS BILL DIDN'T, IN THAT SENSE,
BUT THE ORIGINAL BILL WHICH WAS PASSED AT THE SAME TIME IT
BECAME ONE BILL, THE ORIGINAL BILL, CBO SCORE WHICH WAS NOT
CHANGED, AS LOSING 24 MILLION PEOPLE FROM INSURANCE OVER THE
NEXT FEW YEARS. SO, FROM THAT STANDPOINT, THAT
SCORE IS STILL VALID. WHAT IS NOT SCORED IS THE NUMBER
OF PEOPLE WHO ARE GOING TO LOSE PREEXISTING CONDITIONS, THE
COSTS THAT THERE WILL BE TO THOSE FOLKS IF THEY CAN POSSIBLY
GET COVERAGE, NOTWITHSTANDING ANY PREEXISTING CONDITION.
SO, THAT'S THE SCORE WE DID NOT GET FROM CBO.
>> ALL RIGHT. REPUBLICANS HAVE SAID THAT
OBAMACARE WAS GOING TO COLLAPSE, IT WAS CATASTROPHIC.
IF NOTHING HAD BEEN -- WELL, ASSUMING THAT THIS GOP BILL
NEVER GETS SIGNED INTO LAW, WHAT WOULD YOU PREDICT WOULD HAPPEN
TO OBAMACARE IF IT'S LEFT ALONE AS IT IS?
>> IF IT'S LEFT ALONE, BUT OF COURSE THE REPUBLICANS HAVE NOT
LEFT IT ALONE. WHEN TRUMP TOOK OFFICE, ONE OF
THE FIRST THINGS HE DID WAS TO TELL IRS NOT TO WORRY ABOUT THE
MANDATE. OBVIOUSLY IF YOU'RE GOING TO
HAVE INSURANCE, YOU NEED A BROAD COHORT OF INSURED SO YOU CAN
SPREAD THE RISK. AND THEY HAVE UNDERMINED THAT
ALREADY. OBVIOUSLY THEY HAVE UNDERMINED
THE CONFIDENCE OVER THE LAST SIX OR SEVEN YEARS SAYING THEY
WANTED TO REPEAL IT, IT WAS A BAD BILL.
BUT GOING FORWARD, IF THEY DO NOT SABOTAGE IT, ONE OF THE
THINGS AS YOU KNOW, WE HAD AN ARGUMENT ABOUT, IS THE
COST-SHARING SUBSIDIES SO THAT PEOPLE OF LITTLE INCOME WILL
HAVE NOT ONLY THEIR PREMIUMS PAID, BUT THEIR COPAY AND THEIR
DEDUCTIBLES THEY'LL GET HELP WITH.
THAT IS ABSOLUTELY ESSENTIAL FROM THE INSURANCE COMPANIES'
STANDPOINT BECAUSE THAT'S WHAT THEY MARKETED AND PRICED THEIR
PRODUCT AT GIVEN THAT THAT WAS IN THE LAW AND THAT SHOULD BE
PAID. SO, UNFORTUNATELY THE
REPUBLICANS WITHOUT THE PASSAGE OF A BILL CAN SABOTAGE THE
BILL'S WORKING, UNDERMINE THE CONFIDENCE --
>> IF WE LEFT OBAMACARE AS IS, WHAT HAPPENS?
>> CBO SAYS OBAMACARE OR AS WE LIKE TO CALL IT THE AFFORDABLE
CARE ACT, WILL STABILIZE, WILL DO WHAT IT'S INTENDED TO DO,
OPEN UP INSURANCE TO -- AND MAKE IT AFFORDABLE FOR A VAST NUMBER
OF THE AMERICAN PUBLIC. SO, IF, IN FACT, THE REPUBLICANS
AND THE ADMINISTRATION COOPERATE IN CARRYING OUT THE LAW AS IT'S
WRITTEN, THEN CBO SAYS IT WILL BE STABLE.
>> ALL RIGHT. I WILL SPARE YOU MY SINGING AND
ALSO SPARE MYSELF SO IT US
DOESN'T END UP ON YOUTUBE, THERE WAS JEERING, MOCKING BY
DEMOCRATS, HEY, HEY, GOOD-BYE, YOU KNOW THE SONG.
>> I'M NOT GOING TO SING IT EITHER.
>> I'M NOT GOING TO ASK YOU TO SING IT.
I'LL SPARE YOU A YOUTUBE PRESENCE, TOO.
WHAT DO YOU MAKE OF THAT JEERING?
>> I THINK IT WAS SPONTANEOUS AND A REFLECTION OF, I THINK, A
BROAD FEELING IN THE DEMOCRATIC PARTY THAT REPUBLICANS ARE GOING
TO RUE THE DAY WHEN THEY VOTE THIS BILL.
THERE ARE ONLY 217 OF THEM. IT WAS A VERY CLOSE RAZOR THIN
MARGIN. I THINK THERE WAS A STRONG
FEELING ON OUR SIDE OF THE AISLE THAT THIS VOTE IS GOING TO PROVE
TO BE VERY, VERY HARMFUL TO THE INTERESTS OF REPUBLICANS IN THE
CONGRESS OF THE UNITED STATES WHO SUPPORT IT.
IT IS GOING TO UNDERMINE HEALTH CARE.
IT IS GOING TO UP PRICES. IT IS GOING TO PUT A SENIOR TAX
ON THOSE BETWEEN 50 AND 64, VERY SUBSTANTIAL ONE.
AND IT IS GOING TO MAKE HEALTH CARELESS AVAILABLE.
SO, I THINK OUR FEELING IS THIS WAS A BAD VOTE FOR REPUBLICANS.
WE'VE NOW SEEN HUGE CHANGE, 25% GREATER SUPPORT FOR THE
AFFORDABLE CARE ACT THAN EXISTED BEFORE THE TRUMP ELECTION.
IT WAS GONE FROM 42 TO 55, AND 75% OF AMERICANS SAY, LOOK, FIX
IT, DON'T REPLACE IT. SO THAT WE JUST THINK IT WAS PAY
BAD VOTE. I THINK SOME MEMBERS THOUGHT
THAT THEY WANTED TO ARTICULATE THAT IN SONG AND THEY DID.
>> CONGRESSMAN, THANK YOU. REMEMBER, I DIDN'T ASK YOU TO
SING IT