In the News

The GOP tax cut passed last year will spark sharp rises in health care premiums across the country, according to a new report from the liberal Center for American Progress.

Democrats are seeking to mark the six-month anniversary of the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act, H.R. 1 (115), with a particular focus on how the law, which repealed Obamacare's individual mandate, affects health care.

"The damage was done to America's health care system, and it was substantial," Rep. Richard Neal of Massachusetts, the top Democrat on the House Ways and Means Committee, said in a conference call on the new study.

The report found that the premiums for average health plans for a family of four are expected to rise by close to $2,000 nationwide in 2019, and that states with pricey insurance markets would be especially prone to premium spikes. Wyoming ($3,460), Nebraska ($3,070) and Tennessee ($2,970) are among the places where premiums are estimated to increase the most.

GOP officials have argued that health care premium increases have more to do with what they see as the Affordable Care Act's fundamental flaws than the new tax law.

Republicans themselves are seeking to plug tax law's six-month mark this week, but the controversy surrounding President Donald Trump's immigration policies threatens to drown out those efforts.