(AP Photo/Seth Wenig)

WASHINGTON, DC – With the Administration joining a lawsuit to invalidate the entire Affordable Care Act including its protections for those with pre-existing conditions, Representative Antonio Delgado (NY-19) joined as an original cosponsor in introducing the Protecting Pre-Existing Conditions & Making Health Care More Affordable Act of 2019. Delgado’s action today follows his second in-district work period, where he focused on health care, touring health facilities across the district and speaking at the opening of a new Planned Parenthood facility.

“People across my district are clamoring for better health care services – it’s why I focused my second in-district work period on health care access and affordability. Instead of rolling back progress we have made and yanking out health care from under the very people who need it most, we need to move towards universal health care, lowering folks’ health care costs, and providing better care,” Delgado said. “In the face of an Administration that seems dead-set on undermining the Affordable Care Act and jeopardizing health care for those with pre-existing conditions, I’m glad to join with my colleagues today to shore up protections for these folks.”

The Protecting Pre-Existing Conditions & Making Health Care More Affordable Act of 2019 protects and expands affordable health care options in a number of ways, such as:

• Ensuring that Affordable Care Act marketplace plans cannot discriminate against individuals with pre-existing conditions.
• Expanding subsidies so more middle-class families can receive the support they need to afford health insurance.
• Expanding state and federal outreach efforts so people know what health insurance plans are available to them.
• Eliminating junk insurance plans that don’t cover essential health benefits like maternity care and substance use disorder treatment.

Promoting the health and safety of NY-19 families is a key priority for Delgado. Delgado is a cosponsor of two bills that put patients first – not drug companies – by empowering the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) to negotiate the price of prescription drugs bought through Medicare. He has also elevated the need for investments in rural broadband, which help not only individuals and businesses, but also tele-health programs across the district.