The American Health Care Act (AHCA)

Summary

In January 2017, the House and Senate adopted a budget resolution for FY2017 (S.Con.Res. 3), which reflects an agreement between the chambers on the budget for FY2017 and sets forth budgetary levels for FY2018-FY2026. S.Con.Res. 3 also includes reconciliation instructions directing specific committees to develop and report legislation that would change laws within their respective jurisdictions to reduce the deficit. These instructions trigger the budget reconciliation process, which may allow certain legislation to be considered under expedited procedures. The reconciliation instructions included in S.Con.Res. 3 direct two committees in each chamber to report legislation within their jurisdictions that would reduce the deficit by $1 billion over the period of FY2017 through FY2026. In the House, the Committee on Ways and Means and the Energy and Commerce Committee are directed to report. In the Senate, the Committee on Finance and the Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions are directed to report.

On March 6, 2017, the Committee on Ways and Means and the Energy and Commerce Committee independently held markups. Each committee voted to transmit its budget reconciliation legislative recommendations to the House Committee on the Budget. Combined, these two bills are referred to as the American Health Care Act (AHCA). The House Committee on the Budget is scheduled to mark up the AHCA on March 16, 2017.

The AHCA includes a number of provisions that would repeal or modify parts of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (ACA; P.L. 111-148, as amended) and a number of provisions that do not specifically relate to aspects of the ACA. This report contains three tables that, together, provide an overview of the AHCA provisions. Table 1 includes provisions that apply to the private health insurance market, Table 2 includes provisions that affect the Medicaid program, and Table 3 includes provisions related to public health and taxes. Each table contains a column identifying whether the AHCA provision is related to an ACA provision (e.g., whether it repeals an ACA-related provision).

The Congressional Budget Office (CBO) and the staff of the Joint Committee on Taxation (JCT) estimate that the AHCA would reduce federal deficits by $337 billion over the period FY2017-FY2026. With respect to effects on health insurance coverage, CBO and JCT project that, in FY2018, 14 million more people would be uninsured under the AHCA than under current law and, in FY2026, 24 million more people would be uninsured.