Health Care Costs Will Keep Rising Unless Ciscomani and Schweikert Support Health Care Tax Credit Discharge Petition

TUCSON – Because of Congressmen Juan Ciscomani and David Schweikert’s vote in favor of the Republican Tax Law, Arizonans are facing higher health care costs with no end in sight unless they and just a handful of their colleagues sign on to the Democratic discharge petition to extend health care tax credits by three years.

Ciscomani, Schweikert, and their Republican colleagues have failed to extend the health care tax credits all year, despite knowing that they would expire. As a result, the only feasible option being proposed is the three-year extension proposed by Democrats that Ciscomani and Schweikert have yet to sign onto. 

According to Politico:

“Charities that help people cover their medical bills say they’re seeing an alarming increase in requests for help.

Worse yet, they say, it’s coming even before cuts to Medicaid in President Donald Trump’s One Big Beautiful Bill Act take effect and the potential expiration of Obamacare subsidies at year’s end. The charities are warning of exploding medical debt and lower survival rates for diseases like cancer if Congress doesn’t act.

Financial assistance from the HealthWell Foundation, one of the largest charities in the country, is already 23 percent higher this year than all of last year. Requests swamped the fund it launched this month to help consumers offset higher Obamacare premiums that are likely if the subsidies expire, prompting it to stop taking new applicants after just two days. The Colorectal Cancer Alliance has seen a 26 percent increase in requests year-over-year, and CancerCare, another charity, has seen a 10 percent increase in year-over-year requests.

The strain on health care charities, often one of the last stopgaps keeping low-income Americans from going without care, arrives as Americans struggle with rising health care costs and as Trump and congressional Republicans face greater pressure to deliver price relief.”

“Arizonans are facing health care costs because Schweikert and Ciscomani have yet to sign onto the Democratic discharge petition.” said Andrea Moreno, Executive Director of Honest Arizona. “As the deadline to sign up for coverage rapidly approaches, Schweikert and Ciscomani must do the right thing and support the petition to extend the health care tax credits.”

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