Health Care Bill Would Cost Less but Cause Millions to Lose Insurance

The currently debated health care legislation, known as the Better Care Reconciliation Act (BCRA), designed to replace the so-called Obamacare program could cost millions of people their health care coverage, according to research by the Congressional Budget Office (CBO) and the staff of the Joint Committee on Taxation (JCT).

While under the current legislation there would be a projected 28 million uninsured Americans under the age of 65 years by 2026, this number could rise to 49 million if the BCRA passed Congress and came into effect. The largest effects on spending under the new bill would be for Medicaid, as part of Obamacare. In 2026, $160 billion in expenses could be saved, according to the CBO.

Uninsured estimates reflect the average number of people under age 65 without insurance coverage over the course of the year in the noninstitutionalized civilian population of the 50 states and the District of Columbia. Spending includes payments for medical services, to states for administration of the program, to hospitals that serve a disproportionate share of low-income patients, and payments made under the Vaccines for Children program.