This ACA anniversary: Nunn and Miller-Meeks raise premiums and cut access to care

Monday was the 16th anniversary of the Affordable Care Act and Iowans are continuing to speak out on their Representatives’ actions in Congress that have increased costs and closed rural hospitals and clinics.

The ACA has helped 285,000 Iowans enroll in health insurance since it was established and kept them healthy by expanding coverage for Iowans with pre-existing conditions, and essential benefits like preventative care and prescription drugs. Representatives Zach Nunn and Mariannette Miller-Meeks, have made health care unaffordable in order to fund tax breaks for the ultra-wealthy. They could have protected Medicaid expansion and tax credits that make health coverage affordable. Instead, they voted for historic cuts to Medicaid last year and failed to lower costs. Already this year Ottumwa’s MercyOne clinic has closed in Nunn’s district and Miller-Meeks’ hometown due to health care cuts both have voted for.  

Kerri, a nurse practitioner from Ottumwa, spoke recently about the crisis in rural health care and the impacts that it can have on patients and access to care. 

 “We already have 20 rural hospitals in Iowa that have been operating in the red for at least the past 3 years. That’s 20 pending disasters for rural Iowans,” Kerri said. “If and when rural hospitals and clinics close, we’re talking about having to travel two, three hours away for needed health care. The Ottumwa MercyOne Clinic was not the first and it’s not going to be the last with the way things are headed.” 

Mazie Stilwell, executive director of Progress Iowa, said that Iowa Representatives’ actions in Congress are to blame for higher costs. 

“Representatives Nunn and Miller-Meeks made a choice — they voted to let ACA tax credits expire, voted for Medicaid cuts, and voted for tax breaks for billionaires while Iowans face tenfold premium increases," Stilwell said. "They had the power to protect health care and chose not to. Their votes have raised costs for working families and pushed rural hospitals and clinics closer to closure. Iowans deserve representatives who will fight for affordable health care, not ones who line the pockets of the wealthy at our expense."