Joe Biden, who formerly served as the vice-president to Barack Obama, has decided to come out of retirement in order to defend the Affordable Care Act (ACA). He will team up with Nancy Pelosi on Wednesday to speak out against the Republican’s replacement bill, the American Health Care Act (AHCA).
The ACA provided coverage to millions of people who previously had no access to insurance or health care. The Congressional Budget Office has stated that up to 24 million Americans could lose coverage under the proposed plan. Despite campaign promises from President Donald Trump to make health care more accessible and affordable, the hastily written AHCA seems to do just the opposite and could quickly be passed with a Senate majority vote on Thursday.
Pelosi requested that Republicans work with Democrats to fix the flaws in the ACA. Instead, Republicans have continued on a forward path that appears to deliver tax cuts to the wealthy. Pelosi said in a Face the Nation interview that it was terrible that Republicans are using the working class to subsidize the rich, and she was appalled that the bill was considered to be an “act of mercy” by the Speaker.
Biden and Pelosi are hoping others will join them on the Capital steps tomorrow to try to save the ACA. It could be a matter of life and death for many people.