On May 22nd, the House of Representatives passed the One Big Beautiful Bill Act (H.R. 1) on a close party-line vote of 215-to-214.

This Republican-led legislation is now before the U.S. Senate and the National AFL-CIO with its affiliated Unions are advocating against the $1.3 trillion reduction in medical services that is included in the Republicans’ Budget Reconciliation Policy.

Based on assessments from Health Insurance Experts, Unions are concerned Working Families with employment-based coverage may see their premiums increase significantly as a result of the uncompensated care costs expected to stem from this legislation.

Health coverage is a key benefit Unions often secure for their Members through negotiation with employers.

Union-negotiated Health Benefits are often provided through a Multi-Employer Health Plan that is jointly managed by a Union and employers or under a Collective Bargaining Agreement with a single employer.

The National AFL-CIO requested Industry Analysts advising these health plans to provide an assessment of the impact of massive Federal health spending cuts on people in employment-based coverage.

Additional context is provided from other sources.

Here are the key Concerns:

Uncompensated care costs shifted to private insurance could result in increased yearly costs of $182-to-$485 per person for the 179 million people in employment-based coverage.

Hundreds of hospitals nationwide could reduce capacity or close due to lost revenue, making care unavailable in many communities.

607,000 Health Care jobs may be eliminated, intensifying the U.S. health staffing crisis and reducing everyone’s access to qualified care.

If the Bills is eventually signed into law, Industry Analysts say communities across the U.S. will experience a financial shock that reduces everyone’s access to medical services.

The Republican Budget Reconciliation Bill pairs a package of $3.7 trillion in tax cuts skewed toward the wealthy and corporations with massive spending cuts in Medicaid, the Children’s Health Insurance Program (CHIP), the Affordable Care Act (ACA), and other Federal programs.

The Congressional Budget Office (CBO) found that the Republicans’ Reconciliation Policy will eliminate $1.3 trillion in health care spending under these programs, through reductions in the Bill and failing to include ACA enhanced premium tax credits among the scores of other tax provisions the Bill extends.

The CBO estimated these combined policies will result in 16 million people becoming uninsured and many of the 16 million losing insurance will forgo needed medical care, even for chronic conditions, until they become seriously ill.

To Continue Reading This National AFL-CIO Report, Go To: Higher Costs and Less Care for Families With Job-Based Health Insurance | AFL-CIO

Graphic Provided By The National AFL-CIO