Schumer: ‘Democrats Are Ready to Clear the Way to Quickly Pass a Government Funding Bill that Includes Health Care Affordability’

Schumer: “After so many failed votes, it’s clear we need to try something different. What the Senate is doing isn’t working for either party and isn’t working for the American people. Democrats have said we must address the health care crisis, but Republicans have repeatedly said they won’t negotiate to lower the health care costs until the government reopens. So, let’s find a path to honor both positions. Democrats would like to see an end to this shutdown and we want to respect Leader Thune’s desire not to negotiate on ACA until after the government reopens. Therefore, we’d like to offer a simple proposal that would reopen the government and extend the ACA premium tax credits simultaneously, and then have the opportunity to start negotiating longer-term solutions to health care costs. Let’s do all three. I’ve spoken with my caucus and Democrats are offering a very simple compromise. Democrats are ready to clear the way to quickly pass a government funding bill that includes health care affordability. Leader Thune just needs to add a clean one-year extension of the ACA tax credits to the CR so that we can immediately address rising health care costs. That’s not a negotiation, it’s an extension of current law, something we do all the time around here, as we all know. But we also offer this: let’s create a bipartisan committee that will continue negotiations after the government reopens on reforms ahead of next year’s enrollment period, to provide long-term certainty that health care costs will be more affordable. This proposal reopens the government and ensures working families, who are shopping right now for their health care, get certainty and financial relief. While open enrollment has begun, insurers can update their rates after we pass a simple extension of the tax credits. With this approach, we do not negotiate health care in the shutdown, as Leader Thune has maintained he wishes. And the American people get the tax credit extension they want. That is what many of our Republican colleagues have floated over the last six weeks as a compromise. A one-year tax credit extension and reforms to the credit beyond that. We will agree with the Republican request not to start negotiations until after the government reopens. All Republicans have to do is say yes to extend current law for one year. It makes sense. And since what we’re proposing is only a simple extension of current law, the Senate could do this within a few hours. This is a reasonable offer that reopens the government, deals with health care affordability and begins the process of negotiating reforms to the ACA tax credits for the future. Now the ball is in the Republicans’ court. We need Republicans to just say yes. I yield to Senator Peters.”