GOVERNOR MALLOY ON U.S. HOUSE VOTE TO REPEAL HEALTH CARE REFORM

(HARTFORD, CT) - Governor Dannel P. Malloy this evening released the following statement concerning today's planned vote in the U.S. House of Representatives to repeal the Affordable Care Act.

"No one can deny that reform of our country's health care system is badly needed. But today's vote is a step backwards in Congress' efforts to ensure that families, seniors and small businesses have access to affordable care. Federal health care reform will help free families from having to worry about whether their coverage could be dropped, limited, or capped when it is needed the most. Repeal would put millions of federal dollars our state and hospitals are eligible to receive at risk, in addition to affecting thousands of Connecticut residents who are already benefitting from this law.

"Here in Connecticut, rising costs of health care have been a major detriment to job creation. At a time when our focus needs to be on finding ways to boost job creation and help small businesses grow, we should be finding ways to lower their health care costs and increase coverage for workers.

"I thank Connecticut's delegation in the House of Representatives for standing up against the repeal. My administration will continue actively working with them to ensure that our state receives its fair share of federal dollars and make sure that health care reform is implemented in Connecticut in a cost-effective and consumer-friendly way."

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For Immediate Release: January 19, 2011
Contact: David Bednarz
David.Bednarz@ct.gov
860-524-7315 (office)
860-770-9792 (cell)