This was an interesting election year, was it not?
Senate
34 of the 100 seats in the Senate were up for grabs.[caption id="attachment_3027" align="aligncenter" width="669"]
U.S. Senate Partisan Breakdown before and after the 2016 Election from Ballotpedia.[/caption]
House
All 435 seats in the House of Representatives were in play for the election. (Musical chairs, anyone?)[caption id="attachment_3028" align="aligncenter" width="669"]
U.S. House Partisan Breakdown before and after the 2016 Election[/caption]Regardless of your political affiliation, the nail biter evening brought surprises for many. Now that it's over and the new Administration and Congress are vowing to bring sweeping changes to healthcare, you might be asking how those changes might impact you.
Affordable Care Act
If you are one of the millions who have benefited from the Affordable Care Act, nothing will change for 2017. Enrollment for the 2017 coverage year will continue and according to many, you will not lose your healthcare coverage you've purchased on the Exchange for 2017.
What does that mean to you right now?
Enroll if you need healthcare coverage right now. You have until December 15 to make your application and payment to be covered starting January 1, 2017. Use the information that Dr. Edmund Pezalla provided to DPAC Insiders on his Ask An Expert presentation about Commercial Health Plans for people with diabetes. If you have questions regarding what would be covered under a particular plan, contact a local broker and get the answers or call the plans directly.
What does that mean to you in the future?
Great question. DPAC will be monitoring this issue closely, as we expect action to be taken by the 115th Congress immediately after inauguration. In fact, according to Kellyanne Conway, President-Elect Trump's campaign manager, he is contemplating holding a "special session" of Congress to immediately repeal ACA.While it's unlikely that there will be an immediate impact to the U.S. public, this issue will intensify and polarize Congress over the next several months.While DPAC recognizes that the Affordable Care Act has flaws, a full repeal without a reasonable solution puts millions of Americans at risk.You can sign up for DPAC's Insider Emails to get updates on the ACA issue.
All Those Bills for Diabetes? Not Going Anywhere.
A special thanks to our community, which includes advocates from JDRF, ADA, AADE, and AACE. We believe that by working together, we get more done. And this Congress, we definitely saw that.While we saw unprecedented support for the CGM Medicare Act of 2015 and the National Diabetes Clinical Care Commission Act in this Congress, the expectation is that neither bill will be brought to a House vote. (Hope springs eternal, but this lame duck session isn't looking too springy.)
What does that mean to you right now?
We shouldn't give up. There are still a few days that Congress will meet and have the opportunity to pass legislation, so there's no better time than right now to send a message about these two bills.Here. Click these images and send a message... right now.
CGM Medicare Access Act of 2015
National Diabetes Clinical Care Commission Act
What does that mean to you in the future?
New Congress and new opportunities. Many of those who have already co-sponsored will return for the 115th Congress, and we will be pushing them to co-sponsor these bills when they are reintroduced.This, of course, will also require our community to educate the newer members of Congress. DPAC and other organizations have several ways to do that, so stay tuned. Once January rolls around, we'll be on it.
Now What?
Our community is passionate, intelligent, and committed. The incoming legislators may not quite understand what diabetes is (and what it isn't), but they do understand numbers - budgetary numbers and the number of constituents who contact them to make diabetes a priority for policy.Roll up your sleeves, DPAC Insiders. We have work to do.