Democrats Respond to Rounds and Thune’s Cowardly Dead-of-the-Night Votes to Take Health Care Away from 74,000 South Dakotans
SIOUX FALLS – The South Dakota Democratic Democratic Party released the following statement in response to the cowardly vote of Sen. Mike Rounds, Sen. John Thune, and all but one of the Republicans in the U.S. Senate at Midnight CST last night to take millions of American’s healthcare away – including 74,000 South Dakotans:
“Last night’s vote is the first step in Republican efforts to reapeal the Affordable Care Act with no plan to replace it. If Republicans in Congress get their way, as many as thirty million Americans are set to lose access to affordable health care. Americans with pre-existing conditions like asthma, heart disease, or diabetes could lose coverage and become uninsurable. The Affordable Care Act is literally the difference between living and dying for tens of thousands of Americans – without this insurance, 36,000 people a year could die before their time.
“In addition, Senators Thune and Rounds had a chance to vote in favor of amendments to the repeal which would have protected the healthcare of veterans, children, women, those with preexisting conditions, and 26 year-olds on their parents’ health care plans. In each and every instance, Senators Thune and Rounds put partisanship over the needs of South Dakota families.
“In South Dakota alone, repeal would mean:
- 74,000 South Dakotans could lose health care coverage
- 22,005 South Dakotans would lose financial assistance to cover heath care costs
- 346,000 South Dakotans with pre-existing conditions (including asthma, diabetes, and cancer) could lose affordable coverage and women in South Dakota could be charged more for coverage due to their gender
- 392,000 South Dakotans with private insurance, including 86,000 children, and 156,000 South Dakota seniors on Medicare will lose guaranteed access to free preventive care – including recommended cancer screenings and vaccinations
- The Medicare “donut hole” will open once again, meaning South Dakota seniors and people with disabilities will be forced to pay thousands more for their prescriptions (South Dakotans have saved about $49 million in prescription costs thanks to the ACA closing this “donut hole”)
- South Dakota health care providers would be faced with $260 million more in uncompensated care costs
- South Dakota would lose 7,000 jobs, $4.2 billion in state domestic product, $7.5 billion in business productivity, and $108.4 million in state and local tax revenue
“With no replacement plan in sight, the vote from Senators Thune and Rounds to repeal the Affordable Care Act in the middle of the night is not only cowardly, but cruel. The people of South Dakota deserve better.”
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