As President Biden and Vice President Harris lay out their plan to expand on the progress they’ve made in making health care more affordable and accessible and bringing down the costs of prescription drugs, Donald Trump is plotting to rip away access to lifesaving health care that has benefited hundreds of thousands of Virginians. 

Here’s how the Affordable Care Act has changed the lives of Virginians:

• More than 400,000 Virginians are currently signed up for coverage under the Affordable Care Act (ACA)
• Over 716,000 Virginians have enrolled for Medicaid coverage since the Virginia General Assembly expanded it in 2018
• 1,349,000 Virginians with pre-existing health conditions are now covered
• 45 percent of children in non-metro areas are covered by Medicaid and the Children’s Health Insurance Program

Since 2017, Republicans have been attempting to repeal the ACA. They proudly campaign on ripping away protections for preexisting conditions and preventive care screenings from 45 million Americans, including seniors and children. Premiums and health care costs, including prescription drugs, would skyrocket by thousands of dollars a year for hardworking families. 

“Time and time again, Republicans show Virginians that they don’t care about their health and economic well-being. They care about the profits of Big Pharma and insurance companies,” DPVA Chair Susan Swecker said. “The path to Democratic control of Congress and the White House runs through Virginia this November. President Biden, Vice President Harris, and Democratic congressional leaders will never let Republican threats see the light of day. As we saw last November, Virginians are fired up to vote for Democrats because they know it is the only way to ensure the protection of affordable and quality care.”

The contrast between President Biden and Donald Trump could not be clearer. The Biden-Harris administration has done the following in under three years:

• Lowered the cost of prescription drugs for seniors through the Inflation Reduction Act
• Capped out-of-pocket costs at $35 for a month’s supply of insulin for seniors and people with disabilities on Medicare
• Lowered maximum out-of-pocket costs for Americans with employer and ACA coverage by an average of $400
• Invested $25 billion through the American Rescue Plan to help states strengthen home and community-based care programs
• Extended postpartum Medicaid coverage to nearly 700,000 women across 44 states and the District of Columbia

“Compare what Donald Trump tried to do to what President Biden has done. Instead of trying to destroy the Affordable Care Act, he’s worked to improve it. We passed the American Rescue Plan and the Inflation Reduction Act. We lowered premiums for working families and expanded the number of people who were eligible for coverage,” Rep. Bobby Scott said during a press call. “The contrast could not be more stark. Access to healthcare is at risk across the country if Republicans take control.”

“When my daughter was born premature and I needed to have a hospital-grade pump to feed her, I knew that pump would be covered by the Affordable Care Act. I knew that all pregnancy-related services, maternal health services, cancer screening, mammograms, all would be covered because of the ACA. In Virginia, we were able to expand Medicaid because of the ACA, and over 400,000 Virginians got healthcare coverage,” Rep. Jennifer McClellan said during a press call.