REMINDER: Senator Susan Collins Voted To Enable The Republican Lawsuit That Would End The Health Care Law And Pre-Existing Conditions Protections
 
Today, oral arguments begin in the ongoing lawsuit to nullify the Affordable Care Act (ACA) and its protections for pre-existing conditions - meaning health care for tens of thousands of Mainers and pre-existing condition protections for hundreds of thousands more is on the chopping block. This lawsuit and threat to Mainers’ health care was repeatedly facilitated by Senator Collins:
 
FIRST: Collins signed on to an amicus curiae brief arguing that the ACA should be struck down if the individual mandate was repealed.
THEN: Collins voted to repeal the individual mandate when she helped pass the Republican tax bill, which “sparked” the new federal lawsuit to overturn the ACA by providing a legal framework for the GOP to challenge the health care law.
NOW: Just last month, Collins cast the deciding vote against requiring the Trump administration report on how the Republican lawsuit would harm Maine and states across the country.

Here's what could happen is the GOP's health care lawsuit is successful: 
  • 70,000 Mainers could lose access to health care provided by Medicaid expansion.
  • 548,300 Mainers with pre-existing conditions could have their health coverage threatened due to repeal of such protections. 
  • 171 million Americans could no longer be protected by caps on expensive health care treatments.
  • 60 million Medicare beneficiaries, people who are 65 and older and people with disabilities, could face higher premiums.
  • 2 million young adults who could be kicked off their parents’ health care plan.
Among other things, this is creating “political havoc” for Republicans like Senator Collins, who has become a reliable vote for Washington special interests and votes with Trump 94 percent of the time, more than she did with Presidents Bush and Obama. Now, Collins' approval ratings are at an "all-time low" and her net approval rating has nosedived "by 27 points over the last two years".

Maine Democratic Party Chair Kathleen Marra issued the following statement:
 
“This irresponsible lawsuit that Senator Collins enabled with her votes and actions in Washington is a dire threat to health care for Mainers. By removing protections for pre-existing conditions she is putting the health and finances of tens of thousands of Mainers at risk. Senator Collins endorsed the arguments behind this legal attack from Republicans, she voted with her party to make this lawsuit possible, and she just cast the deciding vote against requiring the Trump administration to disclose the lawsuit’s effects on states like Maine. Our state deserves a Senator who will  take real action to defend Mainers’ access to quality, affordable health care against partisan attacks.” 
 
###