Senators Cassidy, Collins Introduce Comprehensive Health Care Bill

WASHINGTON, D.C. — U.S. Senator Susan Collins today joined Senator Bill Cassidy, M.D., (R-LA) in introducing the Patient Freedom Act, a plan to reform the health care system and to protect millions of Americans who are at risk of losing their health care coverage should the Supreme Court rule in favor of the plaintiffs in the forthcoming King v. Burwell decision. Senator Collins is an original co-sponsor of the Patient Freedom Act, which would help to lower costs, eliminate mandates, give states increased flexibility, and put patients in control of their health care. A companion bill is to be introduced in the House of Representatives by Dr. Ralph Abraham (R-LA).
 
      “The Patient Freedom Act is precisely the type of new thinking we need to ensure Americans have access to affordable, quality health care. By replacing the ‘one size fits all’ approach that is built into the Affordable Care Act with patient-directed reforms that contain costs and provide more choices, this legislation would empower citizens to take charge of their health care,” said Senator Susan Collins. “One of the reasons I opposed the Affordable Care Act was that there was nothing ‘affordable’ about it. Over the last five years, we have seen fewer choices and higher insurance costs for middle-income Americans and small businesses.  I am pleased to join Senator Cassidy, who is a physician, in introducing the Patient Freedom Act to take action to replace the poorly crafted and misguided mandates with a new option for providing patient-directed health care.”
 
A decision for the plaintiffs in King v. Burwell would essentially leave states with two options absent congressional action:

• adopt a state based exchange in the Affordable Care Act, or
• take no action, leaving citizens to lose their health care subsidies

The Patient Freedom Act, however, provides a third option. Participating in the Patient Freedom Act would allow states to structure their health insurance market without an individual mandate or an employer mandate, and without many of the other expensive Affordable Care Act mandates.
 
“By revamping and reforming the Affordable Care Act, we can improve the quality and affordability of health care while retaining the insurance market reforms that help consumers,” Senator Collins continued. “The likely ruling in the King v. Burwell case will require legislative action, giving Congress the opportunity to fix the many flaws and disincentives in the Affordable Care Act.”
 
Under the Patient Freedom Act:

• States would allow individuals to save, tax free, for their health care needs through Health Savings Accounts (HSAs), which would also receive federal funding to help make health care and insurance more affordable for low and middle-income individuals.

• Patients would have the power of portability, protection and price transparency.
• Patients could move between health insurance plans without penalty each year.
• Those with pre-existing conditions would be protected.
• Providers must publish a cash price for services reimbursed from a HSA, empowering patients to compare the prices of procedures.
• Insurers could not impose annual or lifetime coverage limits.
• Young adults could stay on their parents’ health care plan up to age 26.

• This plan would repeal certain Affordable Care Act federal mandates, including the individual and employer mandates.

• The Patient Freedom Act ensures health care dollars go directly to the patient, not to insurance companies.
• States could choose to receive this funding through a per capita patient grant or a federal tax credit, depending on the state’s preference.

• Patients are empowered.
• Americans who receive subsidies under the Affordable Care Act lose their entire subsidy if they earn more than 400 percent of the federal poverty level, which is about $47,000 for an individual and $64,000 for a couple. These “cliffs” threaten Americans with “wage-lock” by discouraging workers from accepting higher-paying jobs or promotions for fear of losing insurance subsidies. The Patient Freedom Act does not contain such “cliffs.” It phases out the assistance depending on income.
• HSAs would be reformed to allow patients to use their health care dollars for more options, including allowing HSAs to be used to pay for health insurance premiums.