As healthcare lawyers, we see the effect that the high cost of health insurance has on patients and on healthcare providers. As a first step in its effort to make America affordable, we urge the new Democratic Congress to re-enact the Affordable Care Act subsidies and to create a special enrollment period for people to obtain coverage. This action would save millions of people thousands of dollars in their health insurance premiums. It would also provide increased review for healthcare providers, especially hospitals who by law must provide services to patients who cannot afford to pay which is the situation for most uninsured patients. Hundreds of hospitals, especially in rural areas, are on the verge of going out of business, and the reinstatement of the subsidies would give them one step toward the relief that they need so desperately.
