Black women denounce court’s decision to gut the Affordable Care Act

Statement from In Our Own Voice: National Black Women’s Reproductive Justice Agenda

WASHINGTON — Yesterday evening, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit struck down the mandatory coverage requirement of the Affordable Care Act (ACA), leaving a lower court to decide if the rest of the landmark legislation can remain without the requirement. Marcela Howell, founder and president of In Our Own Voice: National Black Women’s Reproductive Justice Agenda, issued the following statement in response:

“The court’s decision will cripple — if not kill — the Affordable Care Act (ACA). With the stroke of a pen, the court has paved the way for the Trump administration to make it harder for millions of people to get health insurance coverage. This constant attack by the Trump Administration on the one law that allows those with pre-existing conditions to retain health care should concern us all.

“We know that before the passage of the ACA, people of color accounted for 54 percent of the uninsured in the United States, even though they only made up 35 percent of the population. Black women and other women of color — who already face systemic barriers to accessing health care — were disproportionately impacted. The consistent chipping away at the law by conservative lawmakers and judges means those families could mean a return to millions of women losing the ability to properly care for the health of their families.

“The Trump and his cohorts are hell-bent on destroying the ACA and protecting the insurance industry profiteers. In Our Own Voice calls on Congress to strengthen and improve access to health care for all people, of all races, genders and economic means. We encourage voters to join us in demanding that elected leaders stop playing partisan political games with our health and rights.”

###

In Our Own Voice: National Black Women’s Reproductive Justice Agenda is a national reproductive justice organization focused on lifting up the voices of Black women at the national and regional levels in our ongoing policy fight to secure reproductive justice for all women and girls. Our eight strategic partners include Black Women for Wellness, Black Women’s Health Imperative, New Voices for Reproductive Justice, SisterLove, Inc., SisterReach, SPARK Reproductive Justice NOW, The Afiya Center and Women With A Vision.