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Norton Says Republican Fake Attempts to Defund Obamacare and Planned Parenthood Continue Years of Targeting Health Care for Low-Income Americans

January 7, 2016

WASHINGTON, D.C.—In remarks prepared for the House floor, Congresswoman Eleanor Holmes Norton (D-DC) yesterday blasted House Republicans for beginning 2016 with the old, discredited business of voting to overturn the Affordable Care Act (ACA) for the 62nd time and defunding Planned Parenthood as their first major legislative action of the new year. Norton said that the ACA and Planned Parenthood are already paid for, leaving today's action grounded only in spiteful politics against low-income Americans. She said that rejecting funds his taxpayers had already paid for had led newly-elected Republican Kentucky Governor Matt Bevin to backtrack on his campaign promise to repeal Obamacare's Medicaid expansion for half a million low-income Kentuckians who would have lost their health care. Defunding Planned Parenthood, Norton said, would have a similar impact on underserved Americans, 60% of whom are Medicaid patients who depend on Planned Parenthood for their reproductive health services.

Norton's full statement follows.

REMARKS OF HON. ELEANOR HOLMES NORTON

OF THE DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA ON H.R. 3762, THE RESTORING AMERICANS HEALTHCARE FREEDOM RECONCILIATION ACT OF 2015,

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 6, 2015

Obamacare and Planned Parenthood are Already Paid for Don't Defund the Poor

Ms. Norton. Mr. Speaker,

It's ironic that during our first sessions of the new year today, the House gets down to business with fake business—defunding Planned Parenthood and the 62nd vote to repeal Obamacare. Never mind the inevitable veto by a Democratic President—the Republican Governor of Kentucky, Matt Bevin has already vetoed his own campaign promise to repeal the Medicaid expansion. A Washington Post editorial commended Bevin for "good sense." It's also sound policy and good politics to claim federal funds that your constituents have paid for to improve the health care of half a million low-income Kentuckians.

Defunding Planned Parenthood, or federally funded health care for the 60 percent of their Medicaid patients who depend on Planned Parenthood, would have the same effect as defunding the Medicaid expansion in Kentucky. Both would take away from the neediest living in underserved communities for spiteful political reasons.

Republicans began 2016 with more of the same, by targeting medical care for the poor. Americans deserve better than the same old foolishness in the new year.