As the plan to replace Obamacare moves from the U.S. House to the Senate, Iowa’s Republican Senator Joni Ernst says it’s becoming increasingly urgent to enact a final bill. She says these are tough times for Iowans who are at risk of losing coverage as companies pull away from providing individual policies through the state’s insurance exchange.
“Knowing that very shortly we could have many families who have absolutely no options for insurance is worrisome, and so we know we have to address it,” she says.
Wellmark Blue Cross and Blue Shield and Aetna have announced they will withdraw from the individual market in 2018. Medica is considering doing the same.
Ernst says she is taking a wait-and-see approach to the healthcare legislation that narrowly passed the House of Representatives. She says she wants to make sure a final bill is the right thing to do.
“This is tough for Iowa right now and there is an increased urgency because we know we are going to have families who are losing their coverage,” she says.