Letter to House: Cosponsor H.R. 371 Health Care Choice Act

Dear Representative,

FreedomWorks is a leading grassroots organization with over one million members fighting for lower taxes, less government and more freedom. I am writing today to urge you to cosponsor H.R. 371, the Health Care Choice Act. Introduced by Rep. Blackburn (R-TN), this bill would repeal title 1 of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act and amend the Public Health Service Act to permit consumers to purchase health insurance across state lines. These changes would allow consumers to purchase health insurance that best meets their needs in any state.

The Health Care Choice Act would boost competition in the insurance market. As it currently stands, insurance providers are required to offer plans on a specific state-by-state basis. This has artificially inflated insurance prices, reduced competition and limited flexibility of small employers. Health insurance is no different in principle from other kinds of insurance that are currently available to consumers across state lines.  By removing the existing barriers to the purchase of health insurance across state lines, this legislation would increase consumer choice and thus drive down the cost of insurance

The bill will empower individuals by letting them choose from thousands of insurers rather than only a handful that meets their state’s regulations. The more insurers that individuals have to choose from, the more selective they will be when buying insurance. There’s no good reason that someone must buy insurance in the state in which they live. If a family desires to purchase more affordable or desirable health insurance in another state, they should be allowed to do so.  The Health Care Choice Act will enable consumers to vote with their feet, eschewing policies in their own state that are too expensive because of excessively costly state-imposed regulations and mandates, while ensuring consumers all the basic consumer rights and protections of the state in which they purchase. 

With the price of health insurance skyrocketing around the nation, it is urgent that individuals be allowed to purchase health insurance across state lines. This will increase choice and competition in the health insurance marketplace while likely significantly driving down costs. I urge you to cosponsor Rep. Blackburn’s Health Care Choice Act today.

Sincerely,
 
Matt Kibbe
President and CEO
FreedomWorks
[Click here for a pdf version of this letter.]

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