Pub. 14 2017 Issue 2

O V E R A C E N T U R Y : B U I L D I N G B E T T E R B A N K S - H E L P I N G N E W M E X I C O R E A L I Z E D R E A M S 16 I f you have been paying attention to the news in recent months, it i s di f f icult to ignore the ever-present debate regarding healthcare inAmerica. Ina recentGallup poll, healthcare tied dissatisfaction with the government as the issue most important to Americans at 18 percent. This is not a new trend, as the percentage of Americans concerned about healthcare was even higher dur ing the 1990s, as wel l as pr ior to the enactment of the Af fordable Care Act (ACA) in the early years of the Barack Obama presidency. The issue of healthcare has become so tied to complex dis- cussions and bureaucratic red tape that it is easy to lose sight of the fundamental function of it. If an individual is seriously injured or becomes ill, then he or she is going to require medical attention. This is obviously not subject to debate. The debate surrounding healthcare in the U.S. seems to come down to one fundamental issue: Is it a human right or a commodity that should be sold like other products? The argument has become centered around accessibility and affordability, but the actual purpose of healthcare is never in doubt. House Republicans publicly released the American Health Care Act (AHCA) on March 6, which is intended to replace the Affordable Care Act, also known as “Obamacare”. The version of the bill recently passed in the House, according to Public Policy polling, was supported by only 25 percent of people recently polled. So what does the American Health Care Act contain to make it so wildly unpopular? The Affordable Care Act expanded Medicaid to cover individualsmaking less than $15,880 individ- ually and families of four making less than $32,319 collectively. The AHCA stipulates that no newly eligible people can be added toMedicaid rolls after 2019. This would effectively endMedicaid expansion in 2020. It would also give states a lump sum from the federal government for each enrollee. States would also have the option of a block grant, which is a sum of money not tied to the number of people enrolled. In the current formof Medicaid, the federal government has a commitment to pay a Medicaid enrollee’s bills, no matter how expensive. So, effectively, the AHCA would result in an $880 billion cut to Medicaid. The Senate discussion draft of the AHCA was released on June 22, and features some minor tweaks to the House version, but remains largely similar. As opposed to ending enhanced funding for Medicaid expansion to able-bodied adults who are The Great Healthcare Debate By Mark Anderson, Legal and Legislative Assistant, New Mexico Bankers Association