85R8376 RMA-D     By: Reynolds H.C.R. No. 54       CONCURRENT RESOLUTION          WHEREAS, The Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (ACA)   is a landmark achievement that has enhanced the lives of millions of   Americans by increasing both access to and quality of health care;   and          WHEREAS, Since the law's passage in 2010, more than 21   million people, including 1.7 million Texans, have gained health   insurance coverage, dropping the nation's uninsured rate to a   record low; while our state continues to lead the country with an   uninsured rate 1.75 times higher than the national average, and   although more than 4.3 million Texans still lack coverage, we would   face an even greater problem without this important program; and          WHEREAS, The ACA has benefited Texas families by improving   the affordability of medical care; the law has required health   insurance plans to include preventive services at no extra cost to   consumers and extended mental health and substance use disorder   benefits and federal parity protections to an estimated 62 million   Americans; it has also helped close the Medicare coverage gap for   prescription drugs, saving the program's enrollees in Texas nearly   $1 billion; and          WHEREAS, The law has prohibited a number of discriminatory   practices in the health insurance industry that once precluded   countless people from receiving coverage; in addition to banning   annual and lifetime limits in policies, the law has barred insurers   from denying coverage based on preexisting conditions and from   rescinding policies for any reason other than nonpayment or fraud;   moreover, insurers are no longer allowed to charge women higher   premiums than men for the same coverage; and          WHEREAS, The Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act has   revolutionized health care for the better, as more people now enjoy   the security of health insurance than at any other time in our   nation's history; though it is necessary to continue building on   the law's success with improvements, it is paramount that we uphold   this historic legislation for the millions who currently depend on   it and for the generations to come; now, therefore, be it          RESOLVED, That the 85th Legislature of the State of Texas   hereby urge the United States Congress to preserve the Patient   Protection and Affordable Care Act; and, be it further          RESOLVED, That the Texas secretary of state forward official   copies of this resolution to the president of the United States, to   the president of the Senate and the speaker of the House of   Representatives of the United States Congress, and to all the   members of the Texas delegation to Congress with the request that   this resolution be entered in the Congressional Record as a   memorial to the Congress of the United States of America.