WASHINGTON — Today, on a conference call with New Mexico reporters, U.S. Senator Tom Udall, vice chairman of the Senate Committee on Indian Affairs, outlined the devastating impacts that repealing the Affordable Care Act would have on Tribal communities in New Mexico and throughout the nation.
Udall has heard from many Tribal leaders and Native Americans in New Mexico and throughout Indian Country who are concerned about efforts to repeal and replace the Affordable Care Act (ACA), including the Medicaid expansion — which has insured nearly 287,000 Native Americans from 492 Tribes, including 45,600 Native Americans in New Mexico and has helped fill badly needed funding gaps at the Indian Health Service. Udall echoed the concerns of Tribal leaders who have decried the complete lack of Tribal consultation on Republicans’ health care efforts, which would have sweeping and disastrous consequences for Indian Country. Earlier today, Udall held a roundtable discussion with Tribal leaders from across Indian Country to hear about the impact of ACA repeal on Native Americans’ health care.
Last night, after two more GOP senators announced their opposition and derailed the latest attempt to pass TrumpCare, Senate Republican Leader Mitch McConnell announced that he would pursue a strategy of repealing the ACA entirely, with no plan to replace it. In a statement following McConnell’s announcement, Udall called the strategy “even more dangerous” for New Mexico.
Udall said his top priority as the vice chair of the Indian Affairs Committee is to ensure the government is fulfilling the federal trust duties to Tribes, and that a repeal of the ACA would violate our trust responsibility to provide Native Americans with comprehensive, quality health care. Udall said, “The Indian Health Service is the primary agency for fulfilling this responsibility. But the IHS is severely underfunded…. As a result, IHS has been forced to ration care. I heard today, that people used to say, ‘Don’t get sick after June.’ Because that’s when IHS would run short of money. Basic services like well-visits, prenatal exams, and mammograms have been unavailable for many IHS patients. But the Affordable Care Act has made a huge difference”
Udall said the ACA has been instrumental in providing essential care and boosting the economy in Native communities saying, “Because of the ACA, 64 percent of IHS patients have coverage that allows them to receive care above the ‘life and limb only’ level. And we can see the results. Tribal members are healthier. New medical clinics are opening in Indian Country. And Tribal communities and economies are better off.”
In recapping the roundtable he held earlier today to hear from Tribal leaders on what repealing the ACA would mean for their communities, Udall said, “The message was plain and simple. Native communities rely on Medicaid. Repeal would devastate them. It must be stopped.”
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Below are Udall’s remarks:
0:05 — I’m sure you’ve heard that the latest version of TrumpCare has collapsed. The Republicans can’t get a majority to support it because the bill would be devastating for the 32 million Americans who would lose their health care. That includes almost 300,000 New Mexicans.
0:21 — New Mexicans rejected TrumpCare, and their voices made the difference. But now, Leader McConnell and President Trump are trying something even more dangerous – repealing the Affordable Care Act completely, including the Medicaid expansion, without any plan to replace it.
0:38 — I’m leading a day of action to highlight the devastating consequences of repeal for Native Americans. This morning, I convened a roundtable discussion with Tribal leaders from across Indian Country, including Daryl Candelaria the administrator of the Pueblo of San Felipe. And this afternoon, I will be speaking on the Senate floor about how Washington Republicans’ efforts will devastate health care in Indian Country.
1:07 — As the vice chair of the Indian Affairs Committee, my top priority is making sure our government is fulfilling its trust duties to Tribes. But repealing Obamacare does the opposite. It would be disastrous for the health care of American Indians and Alaska Natives in New Mexico and across the nation.
1:29 — The U.S. government has a trust responsibility to provide Native Americans with comprehensive, quality health care. The Indian Health Service is the primary agency for fulfilling this responsibility. But the IHS is severely underfunded. The IHS has just $3,500 per patient – less than one-third of the national average.
1:52 — As a result, IHS has been forced to ration care. I heard today, that people used to say, “Don’t get sick after June.” Because that’s when IHS would run short of money. Basic services like well-visits, prenatal exams, and mammograms have been unavailable for many IHS patients. But the Affordable Care Act has made a huge difference.
2:19 — Nearly 287,000 Native Americans from 492 Tribes have benefited from the ACA’s Medicaid expansion. In New Mexico alone, Medicaid expansion has insured an additional 45,600 Native Americans.
2:39 — Because of the ACA, 64 percent of IHS patients have coverage that allows them to receive care above the “life and limb only” level.
2:51 — And we can see the results. Tribal members are healthier. New medical clinics are opening in Indian Country. And Tribal communities and economies are better off.
3:02 — The Republican repeal effort would undo this progress. It will devastate Medicaid. It will take away those life-saving services. It will shut down those new health facilities. And it will freeze economic progress in Indian Country.
3:18 — These aren’t just numbers and statistics. We are talking about people’s lives.
3: 26 — The roundtable we held this morning was important. I heard directly from Tribal leaders about the damage this bill would do to Native communities. The message was plain and simple. Native communities rely on Medicaid. Repeal would devastate them. It must be stopped.
3:42 — President Trump and Washington Republicans tried to ram TrumpCare through: without hearings, without Tribal consultation, and without thought for the health and welfare of Indian Country.
3:54 — Thankfully, the latest version of TrumpCare failed. But Republicans’ new path is even more dangerous. I’m going to fight tooth and nail against repeal to protect the health of Indian Country.
4:08 — Udall answers questions about the Tribal impacts of an ACA repeal and the latest revelations of potential collusion between the Trump administration and the Russian government.
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