Washington, DC -Congresswomen Rosa L. DeLauro (CT-3), Debbie Wasserman Schultz (FL-20), Donna F. Edwards (MD-4), Chellie Pingree (ME-01), and Kathy Dahlkemper (PA-3) held a press conference today to discuss the free preventive health care coverage that will be made available through the Affordable Care Act.
An essential component of the Affordable Care Act, preventive care will help Americans stay healthy, live more active lives, and result in lower health care costs. health insurance companies are now required to provide preventive care with no out-of-pocket costs, enabling many Americans to be able to afford essential tests such as mammograms and colonoscopies. An estimated 88 million Americans will benefit from these free life-saving preventive measures over the next three years. Chronic and often preventable diseases such as heart disease and diabetes are responsible for 7 out of 10 deaths in our country, and they account for 75 percent of our health spending. Preventive care can help Americans avoid these life-threatening ailments, or catch them before it is too late.
Women will benefit greatly from these new requirements, as they will from the Affordable Care Act in general: the law is profoundly transforming women’s lives for the better, and includes a comprehensive approach to women’s health that covers everything from maternity care to mammograms. No longer can having a child or having had a c-section, or being a victim of domestic violence be treated as “pre-existing conditions” by an insurance industry eager to cut corners for profit.
“Today, we celebrate an important milestone in the implementation of the Affordable Care Act. Preventive and wellness care must be covered by all insurance policies in America, period. That means that in the next year alone, 41 million Americans have better access to potentially life-saving preventive treatments and tests such as mammograms, colonoscopies, flu shots, and immunizations – treatments that save lives. And this for the first time, without co-pay,” said Congresswoman DeLauro. “Today fulfills many of the goals this Congress had in mind when we first set out to draft a much-needed and comprehensive health reform law in 2009. This is a great day for Americans and for our health care system.”
“Under the Affordable Care Act, Americans can have cancer diagnosed earlier, safer pregnancies, and children immunized against deadly diseases,” said Congresswoman Wasserman Schultz. “Simply put, the Republican strategy of repeal is a death sentence for countless numbers of Americans.”
“The preventive care provisions are a prime example of how the Affordable Care Act is making quality, accessible health care coverage available to all Americans,” said Congresswoman Edwards. “By 2013, 88 million Americans will see preventive coverage for mammograms, colonoscopies and other services improve due to this new policy, and at no added cost, no co-pays, and no deductibles. In 2009, we made a promise to provide working families with the coverage they deserve and here we are keeping that promise — delivering prevention to improve health, save lives, and save money.”
“The new rules going into effect today will save thousands of lives every year and bring down costs because it is far more cost effective to treat diseases like cancer when they are detected early,” said Congresswoman Pingree. “Having to pay sometimes-unaffordable out-of-pocket expenses to get basic checkups and preventative care discourages the kind of treatment that saves lives and saves money.”
Health care reform is not just about lowering costs and expanding access to care–it’s about helping Americans stay healthy,” said. Congresswoman Dahlkemper. “Free preventative care–no copayments for things like regular check ups and cancer screenings–will help Americans maintain their health and prevent the chronic diseases and other illnesses that add the most significant costs to our medical system and prevent people from leading productive, active lives.”
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