HARRISBURG — Members of the Pennsylvania House of Representatives cast a majority vote Tuesday to codify into state law certain protections granted by the Affordable Care Act in the event the federal law is struck down or repealed.
All four bills now advance to the Republican-controlled state Senate for further consideration.
The bills that cleared the House on Tuesday propose to allow parents the option to maintain insurance coverage for their adult children until they reach the age of 26, prohibit insurers from setting annual and lifetime limits of a plan’s coverage, prohibit coverage denial for pre-existing conditions and maintain access to preventative health care without cost-sharing for patients.
Each bill includes a provision triggering enactment in the event Congress repeals the ACA, the executive branch refuses to enforce or acts to repeal the respective regulations, or the provisions are overturned in court.
There were no floor debates on any of the four Democratic bills and each advanced with Republican support, but three reintroduced from last session saw opposition votes grow from Republicans.
A spokesperson for House Democrats previously said the respective bills’ language hadn’t changed.
The measure on maintaining coverage for adult children, which passed 123-79, saw 40 more Republicans vote “no” compared to a floor vote in October 2024 ahead of the end of the 2023-24 legislative session. For the bill concerning pre-existing conditions, 49 additional Republicans voted in the negative. It passed 125-77. The bill regarding coverage limits, which passed 121-81, had an additional 39 opposition votes from Republicans.
When the floor session ended, House Democrats gathered on the Capitol Rotunda steps to celebrate the successful votes, decry threats to the Affordable Care Act in Washington, D.C. and encourage support in the Pennsylvania Senate.
“We know what is happening at the federal government right now. So many say, ‘well, what are you all doing in Harrisburg?’ Well, I am here to tell you we in Harrisburg are stepping up to defend your right to health care. We are not just saying it, we’re doing it,” House Speaker Joanna McClinton, D-Philadelphia/Delaware, exclaimed during the rally.
The bills face substantial challenge in the Senate, where Democrats are in the minority. Minority chair of the Senate Appropriations Committee, Sen. Vincent Hughes, D-Montgomery/Philadelphia, championed the ACA signed into law 15 years ago this week and called on opponents — specifically naming the administration of President Donald Trump — to “keep their hands off our health care.”
“At the same time as the speaker indicated, we’re not waiting for them to get good sense. We’re taking action on our own here in Pennsylvania,” Hughes said in the Rotunda, adding that Gov. Josh Shapiro, a Democrat, said he’d sign the bills into law should they clear the General Assembly.
“To the Senate Republicans, pass those good health care bills,” Hughes said before reiterating his support during separate remarks on the Senate floor.
When Hughes returned to the Senate chamber, he gave similar remarks from the floor and was particularly critical of the Trump Administration. Sen. Joe Pittman, the Republican majority floor leader, accused Hughes of “fear-mongering” and encouraged Pennsylvanians not to “lose any sleep tonight over what we just heard.”
“Let’s make something very clear about the message that was sent to Washington, D.C. on Nov. 5, 2024. It was a very clear message and that message was that things in Washington, D.C. aren’t working anymore,” Pittman said, playing on words spoken by Hughes. “We have a change agent (Trump) who is focused on figuring out a better path forward because it’s not working anymore.”
Pittman said the “best policies” that Pennsylvania lawmakers can promote and pursue are of economic development, creating family sustaining jobs that provide quality health insurance.
Hughes and Pittman exchanged remarks about raising Pennsylvania’s $7.25 minimum hourly wage to $15. Hughes encouraged the move to help create an “economy that has family-sustaining jobs.” Pittman said even if a minimum wage was intended to sustain families — which he said was never the case — the proposed new minimum wouldn’t qualify.
“Don’t tell the people of Pennsylvania that raising the minimum wage fixes all the problems because it doesn’t,” Pittman said, adding that job creation in the energy and manufacturing sectors should be of primary importance for Pennsylvania’s economy.