**Watch Congresswoman Fletcher Work to Improve Health Care HERE**

(Washington, DC)—Today, on the 11^th anniversary of the passage of the Affordable Care Act (ACA), Congresswoman Lizzie Fletcher (TX-07) worked to build on the ACA’s historic coverage gains and strengthen the nation’s health care system.  During a House Committee on Energy and Commerce Health Subcommittee hearing, members considered more than a dozen bills to lower health care costs, expand coverage, and protect Americans with pre-existing conditions.   

Congresswoman Fletcher highlighted the improvements to the Affordable Care Act provided through the American Rescue Plan.  The American Rescue Plan helped make health care more affordable and included Congresswoman Lizzie Fletcher’s bill to incentivize hold-out states, including Texas, to adopt Medicaid expansion. 

“Making health care more affordable and accessible is important for people across my community—especially during the COVID-19 pandemic,” said Congresswoman Lizzie Fletcher.  “The American Rescue Plan built on this landmark legislation, but there’s more we can do, and to commemorate the eleventh anniversary of the Affordable Care Act, we are actively working to identify areas of improvement.  I am glad to work with my colleagues on the Energy and Commerce Committee to build on the legislation’s successes and improve health care for families across our communities.” 

During today’s hearing, Congresswoman Fletcher emphasized the need for hold-out states like Texas to expand Medicaid and highlighted the significant financial incentives as provided through her Expand Medicaid Now Act.  In response, Cindy Mann, former Deputy Administrator for the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) and the former Director of the Center for Medicaid and CHIP Services (CMCS) noted: 

“The Kaiser Family Foundation has estimated that the 12 states together will get about $9.6 billion so they all go forward and expand coverage—and Texas will get the lion's share of those dollars because of the size of the uninsured population and the extent in their program.”  

In addition to Fletcher’s bill to provide new incentives for the remaining holdout states to finally expand Medicaid, the American Rescue Plan builds on the ACA to make health coverage more accessible and affordable by: 

• Expanding financial assistance to families participating in marketplace exchanges: 
  • The American Rescue Plan provides financial assistance for more people by expanding Marketplace tax subsidies to more middle-class Americans for 2021 and 2022, including those with incomes above 400 percent of the federal poverty line. 
  • Enrollees will pay no more than 8.5% of their income towards coverage, down from nearly 10%:
    • A family of four with an annual income of $40,000 would save nearly $1,600 annually. 
    • A family of four with an annual income of $65,000 would save nearly $2,800. 
    • A family of four with an annual income of over $105,000, who previously did not qualify for premium subsidies would see their premiums cut almost in half and save $7,000 annually.

• Expanding the number of people eligible to save money on their health care coverage:
  • About 14.9 million Americans who currently lack health insurance will be able to save money on their premiums to find the coverage they need at a price they can afford. 
  • More than 500,000 currently uninsured Texans are newly eligible for subsidies to make their health coverage more affordable in the Marketplaces. 

• Providing assistance to laid-off workers who want to remain on their employer health insurance plans through COBRA, ensuring they do not pay any premiums from April through the end of September:
  • Prior to the American Rescue Plan Act, those who chose to remain on their health insurance through COBRA were required to pay the full cost of their coverage, including the employer contribution, making the cost prohibitive and preventing many from doing so.

• Providing a 10-percentage point increase to states for expenditures on Medicaid home- and community-based services (HCBS), which allow seniors and people with disabilities to live in the community, rather than entering institutions.  It provides states with an additional $12.6 billion to provide critical care to these vulnerable populations.