WASHINGTON-DC: Today, President Trump signed an executive order that will decimate access to care for those who need it most. The following statement can be attributed to Rea Carey, Executive Director of the National LGBTQ Task Force:
"Trump's executive order undermines key protections provided by the Affordable Care Act ( ACA ) that prevent discrimination against people with pre-existing conditions. Included in the executive order is a directive to expand access to plans that fail to offer necessary services, like mental health and substance use care, pregnancy and childbirth care and prescription drug coverage. Promoting skimpier plans will ultimately make costs higher for the people who need health care the most, like the 65% of LGBTQ people who live with a pre-existing condition.
This executive order is the latest move by the Trump administration to bypass the democratic process and dismantle the Affordable Care Act, and it could lead to a total collapse of the health care system in the US.
Trump's unilateral action today is an attempt to do what Congress couldn't — destroy access to healthcare. Congress has failed again and again to repeal the ACA. They failed because the public has tirelessly spoken up and out against proposals that would have left 20 million people or more without insurance — including at least 1 million LGBTQ people. Trump's executive order could devastate millions of people's wellbeing and disproportionately harm the most marginalized communities, including LGBTQ people, people of color, disabled people, people living with HIV, women, elderly people, low-income people and their families and people looking to start families.
President Trump has failed at finding a bipartisan solution to improving access to care in this country. With this executive order, Trump risks our health, especially the health of LGBTQ people. For some of us, this means he is risking our lives. His version of politics is dangerous to our well being."
The National LGBTQ Task Force works to secure full freedom, justice, equality, and equity for lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and queer ( LGBTQ ) people. For over forty years, we have been at the forefront of the social justice movement by training thousands of organizers and advocating for change at the federal, state, and local level. www.thetaskforce.org
