GOP healthcare bill should be revealed to all

Out of sight, Republican senators are making a backroom deal on a bill to repeal and replace the Affordable Care Act. We, the people of Arkansas, deserve to know what’s in it. The changes would affect not only our private insurance coverage — premiums and deductibles — but also a public coverage model that has proven very effective here in Arkansas.

The version passed by the House, which President Trump described as “mean,” would result in 23 million people losing coverage and higher out-of-pocket costs for those who remain insured. It would not only put a stop to our state’s Medicaid expansion (putting insurance for 300,000 Arkansans at risk) but would end Medicaid as we know it. That’s the coverage for millions of seniors, people with disabilities, and children. It would also take away protections from people with pre-existing conditions.

A government report released Thursday showed that people who buy their own insurance would see out-of-pocket costs — deductibles and co-payments — increase an average of 61 percent under the House bill.

Would the Senate version do this? We don’t know.

It’s time we demanded an end to the secrecy. This is a federal law that regulates one-sixth of our nation’s economy. It needs improvement, no doubt. But a hurried schedule — accelerated only for political purposes — would have the Senate vote just hours after the bill becomes public, and before we know how it really affects us. Before our doctors and nurses and hospitals have a chance to weigh in.

Sen. Tom Cotton is in the room for these negotiations. He owes us, the people of Arkansas, the information he has gathered in our name. If our interests are being protected, why not tell us how?

Sen. Cotton and Sen. John Boozman should commit today that, before they agree to bring a bill to the floor, they will provide time for constituents to see the final language so we can see how it differs from the House bill; to understand — with the benefit of a Congressional Budget Office analysis — how the bill and any last-minute changes will affect coverage and costs; and to provide input on how the bill will affect us.

We, the voters and citizens of Arkansas, deserve no less.

LAURA KELLAMS Fayetteville Arkansas Advocates for Children and Families