“Today’s development in the House of Representatives is a victory for women’s health and women’s access to care. In fact, the country dodged a bullet when House leaders pulled the American Health Care Act – a truly atrocious bill that would have taken health coverage away from tens of millions of people, raised costs for many more, gutted Medicaid and defunded Planned Parenthood – while giving massive tax breaks to the rich and to large corporations.

Still, it is appalling that the president and so many representatives supported a bill that would have caused premiums, co-pays and other costs to skyrocket; wiped out the consumer protections and benefit standards that are essential to meeting women’s health care needs; created an age tax on older purchasers; allowed states to require new mothers who rely on Medicaid to work just 60 days after giving birth; attacked women’s access to essential health benefits including maternity care; and expanded harmful abortion restrictions that already deny women access to the health care they need.

It’s long past time to end the baseless attacks on the Affordable Care Act (ACA), which has been the greatest advance for women’s health in a generation. Instead, we need lawmakers to work together to continue to improve marketplace stability and make quality, affordable coverage available to all.

Without quality, affordable health care, women, families and our economy simply cannot thrive. We need to continue the incredible progress the ACA created.”