Analysis Shows Patient CARE Act Better for Patients and Taxpayers Than Obamacare

Independent Economic Analysis Finds Plan Decreases Premiums, Lowers Deficit, and Increases Access to Providers

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, U.S. Senator Richard Burr (R-NC), Senate Finance Chairman Orrin Hatch (R-UT), and House Energy and Commerce Chairman Fred Upton (R-MI) issued the following statement regarding the release of the independent Center for Health and Economy analysis of the Patient Choice, Affordability, Responsibility, and Empowerment (CARE) Act. The Center for Health and Economy found that the Patient CARE Act would lower premiums, improve access to providers, increase medical productivity, and reduce the nation’s deficit by hundreds of billions of dollars. 

“Better access, higher quality, and more affordability – these are the central tenets that any health care reform should strive for, and they are precisely what the Patient CARE Act would achieve. Americans continue to grapple with the messy fallout and broken promises of the president’s health care law – including higher costs, inaccurate tax forms, reduced choices, and increased difficulty finding a doctor. There is a better way. This analysis confirms that empowering patients, not Washington, leads to a stronger, more accountable and responsive health care system,” said Burr, Hatch, and Upton. “We look forward to continuing to work with our colleagues on advancing health reforms that will protect Americans who are suffering from Obamacare’s costly consequences as we move toward a system that puts health care back in the hands of patients, families, and their doctors, not Washington.”      

Burr, Hatch, and Upton recently unveiled the Patient CARE Act, a legislative plan that repeals Obamacare and replaces it with common-sense, patient-focused reforms that reduce health care costs and increase access to affordable, high-quality care. In contrast with Obamacare and its government-centered mandates and regulations, this bicameral proposal empowers the American people to make the best health care choices for themselves and their families. The leaders will continue to work with their Senate and House colleagues, states, and experts in the health care community to improve this blueprint and help Americans suffering under Obamcare. 

The Center for Health and Economy (H&E) found that the Patient CARE Act would:

• Reduce Premiums. H&E “estimates that the Patient CARE Act will lead to lower health insurance premiums in all plan categories for both single and family coverage.” In fact, H&E estimates the proposal would decrease average insurance premiums in some coverage categories by up to 17 percent. 
• Increase Access to Providers. According to H&E, the Patient CARE Act “is projected to result in greater patient access to providers...access will increase by 5 percent for the insured population.” 
• Expand Private Coverage. H&E found that the Patient CARE Act would result in 10 million more Americans receiving private coverage in the individual market than under current law. 
• Reduce the Deficit. H&E determined that the Patient CARE Act “will decrease the federal deficit by $534 billion between 2016 and 2025.”
• Increase Medical Productivity. H&E’s analysis found that the Patient CARE Act “is expected to lead to greater productivity than under current law.”

Learn more about the Patient CARE Act HERE. 

Read a two-page summary of the Patient CARE Act HERE