The Burrell Institute for Health Policy and Research announces the release of The Potential Impact of the Repeal of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act in New Mexico, a white paper that assesses the potential impact of a repeal of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act of 2010 (ACA) on New Mexico and examines the impact of current proposals to replace the law, including the American Health Care Act (AHCA) currently being deliberated by Congress.
“Our findings suggest that repeal of the ACA with any of the proposed replacement policies would have a devastating impact on New Mexico’s residents, health-care systems, and overall economy,” said lead author Renée Despres, Ph.D., MPH, research rellow at the Institute. “All of the proposals we analyzed would lead to health care becoming less safe, less innovative, less focused on quality and value, and more expensive.”
The impact would extend beyond health-care coverage and costs to loss of programs that support childhood vaccinations, public health’s ability to respond to emergencies like Zika virus or bird flu, the health-care workforce, and the state’s economy. Federal, state, and local investment in communities would be reduced, leading to significant job loss and economic instability.
“It’s important to recognize that economic losses would impact all sectors, not just health care,” said Dr. Despres. “New Mexico is especially vulnerable because we have so many small, “mom-and-pop” businesses, a high poverty rate, and large rural areas.”
Key findings from the report include:
- Repeal of expanded Medicaid, tax credits, and subsidies would lead to a 136% increase in the uninsured rate.
- At least four out of 10 New Mexicans would stand to lose health-care coverage if the ACA’s protections for people with pre-existing conditions were repealed.
- Repeal of the ACA’s “lifetime limits” prohibition would jeopardize health-care coverage for the more that 27% of New Mexicans living with chronic health conditions.
- Repeal of Medicaid expansion would leave nearly one out of 10 New Mexicans without health coverage and lead to 1,323 excess preventable deaths per year in the Medicaid population.
- Repeal of the expansion of expanded mental health and substance use disorder benefits would affect about 403,000 New Mexicans – more than one out of five.
- Repeal of Section 101, Prevention and Public Health, would cause New Mexico to lose at least $43,257,135 in prevention funding over the next five years.
- Based on the estimated losses in federal funding, about 32,500 New Mexicans would lose their jobs, 75% outside of health-care.
“We are pleased to present this report and hope that it will facilitate the analysis and understanding of proposals to repeal and replace the ACA,” said Hugo Vilchis, MD, MPH, executive director of the Institute and associate dean at the Burrell College of Osteopathic Medicine. “Our aim is to provide policy makers and other stakeholders with accurate, unbiased, timely information so they can make informed decisions about what is best for our state.”
Click here to read the complete paper:
Potential Impact of Repeal of Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act on NM
About the Burrell Institute for Health Policy & Research
The mission of the Burrell Institute for Health Policy & Research is to provide accurate and timely information that can be used to craft health policies to improve the health of New Mexicans and the US-Mexico border population. Founded in 2016, the Institute is committed to providing unbiased research and analysis and sharing evidence-based recommendations.
Media Contact at time of story:
Justin McHorse, M.S.
Chief of Staff, Assistant Dean Multicultural Inclusion
3501 Arrowhead Drive
Las Cruces, NM 88001
(575) 674-2206
Current Media Contact:
communications@burrell.edu
