Nearly 400 health care experts urge Congress to reject Trumps HHS Secretary

https://thinkprogress.org/nearly-400-health-care-experts-urge-congress-to-reject-trumps-hhs-secretary-27ecb6cf08b#.jvjwmz9b9

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50 years of health reform will be on the chopping block, if Trump’s HHS pick gets his way

It’s not just Obamacare.
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Nearly 400 health care researchers and medical faculty members — people who study public health and the health care system for a living — have signed an open letter urging Congress to reject Rep. Tom Price (R-GA), Trump’s pick for Secretary of Health and Human Services.

“As researchers and faculty members who study public health, health care, and the health care system, we strongly encourage you to reject Tom Price’s nomination,” the letter begins.

“Not only is Congressperson Price accused of compromising himself with insider knowledge concerning stock trades on the health care market, but he has long advocated for changes in our health care system that will have devastating consequences for millions of Americans.”

Signatories include faculty from some of the United States’ most prestigious medical schools, and the list is still growing. Yesterday, the letter had been signed by 200 — as of publishing time, the count is now at 375.

Price and President-elect Trump have promised to reveal their health care plan only after Price is confirmed. Based on Price’s previous proposals, however, the experts lay out a laundry list of disasters his policies could cause for the overall well-being of the American public.

For one, Price is an outspoken advocate of repealing Obamacare. Last year, he was the architect of the Empowering Patients First Act (EPFA), a replacement plan that Obama vetoed after Republicans passed it. Yet despite its flashy name, the experts point out that Price’s plan would actually result in less coverage at a higher cost for many Americans.

Price’s plan would repeal the mandate that requires that healthy individuals purchase insurance, which is deeply unpopular with Republicans. Repealing the mandate, however, is predicted to result in lower-cost, healthy individuals leaving the market. Thus, it would ultimately drive up health care premiums for everyone else — exacerbating the problem Price claims to be combating.