PHOTOS: Sen. Schiff, Rep. Levin Expose Health Care Premium Hikes, Slam Republicans for Refusal to Negotiate to Avert Government Shutdown

Oceanside, CA - Today, U.S. Senator Adam Schiff (D-Calif.) and Representative Mike Levin (D-Calif.-49) were joined by health care leaders at TrueCare's Mission Mesa Clinic to highlight the devastating consequences of health care premium rate hikes if the Affordable Care Act (ACA) tax credits that reduce health care costs for Americans aren't extended in a funding deal this year.

Schiff and Levin discussed how Congressional Republicans' refusal to negotiate a bipartisan government funding deal ahead of the September 30th deadline will drive premium increases.

"With Trump and GOP leadership refusing to talk, we are on the verge of a destructive shutdown. Their massive cuts to Medicaid and the ACA have left us with an impending crisis in health care - with millions of Americans about to see a tremendous increase in their premiums," said Senator Schiff. "A family of four in Oceanside could see their health insurance go up by almost a thousand dollars. I hope the President and Republicans in Congress will come back to the table and end the crisis. Because if they don't, millions of Americans will suffer."

"Let's be clear. Republicans control the House. Republicans control the Senate. Trump is in the White House. If the government shuts down, it is because they wanted it to shut down," said Representative Levin. "We must lower costs for families, protect access to care, and stop this breakdown of the American health care system that we are seeing in real time. I am ready to return to Washington right now to work to prevent a shutdown and protect the services that San Diego families depend on. And while I will keep working in good faith, I will not compromise health care for my constituents."

More than 20 million Americans are at risk of dramatically increased health care premiums if the tax credits aren't extended and 600,000 Californians will lose health care coverage. Democrats are willing to negotiate a bipartisan government funding bill that protects health care, reduces costs, and avoids a shutdown, but Republicans-who hold the majority in both the House and the Senate-are refusing to negotiate.

Schiff and Levin were joined by health care professionals including Michelle D. Gonzalez, CEO and President of TrueCare, and Dr. Will Tseng, Critical Care Physician at San Diego Medical Society and California Medical Association.

"These premium tax credits are now the tool that ensures health care transformation continues," said Michelle D. Gonzalez, CEO and President of TrueCare. "They are the lifeline that makes coverage affordable for working parents, young adults, and seniors at a time when the cost of living is stretching families to the breaking point. Allowing these credits to expire does not accurately reflect the lived reality of the many patients served by TrueCare in the aftermath of severe healthcare funding cuts."

"We cannot allow a Continuing Resolution to ignore this crisis. Because if Congress fails to act, the harm will be real: children without care, families without doctors, communities without hospitals,"said Dr. Will Tseng, Critical Care Physician at San Diego Medical Society and California Medical Association. "It will be every physician's nightmare - standing at a bedside knowing the harm was preventable if only someone had acted sooner. Primum non nocere. First, do no harm. That is the oath we live by. It should be the oath Congress lives by."

Download Senator Schiff's remarks here.

View photos from the event below:

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