08.01.17

Durbin Statement On Proposed Illinois Health Insurance Premium Increases for 2018

WASHINGTON—U.S. Senator Dick Durbin (D-IL) released the following statement after Illinois health insurers announced that prices on the exchange could increase next year. This year, more than 350,000 Illinois residents enrolled in plans on the individual market.

“The White House efforts to sabotage our health care system can be seen in the proposed premium increases under the Affordable Care Act in Illinois next year. President Trump’s tactics are well documented: He issued an Executive Order instructing federal agencies not to enforce the law, cut the open enrollment period in half, and cancelled television and radio ads that educated people about how to enroll for insurance. And President Trump—to this day—refuses to commit to paying cost-sharing reduction subsidies that help keep premiums lower for working families. Don’t just take my word for it: Illinois insurers very clearly indicated that the proposed 2018 premium increases are a direct result of actions being taken by the Trump Administration. 

“The President should stop obsessing over winning the next political battle and instead join in a bipartisan effort to help Illinois families who are battling their threatened premium increases.”