WASHINGTON, D.C.— Today, the Democratic Attorneys General Association (DAGA) released the following statement from Executive Director Sean Rankin in response to repeated attacks by President Trump and the GOP on health care over the last week, including the Trump administration’s decision against holding a special enrollment period to sign up for health care through the Affordable Care Act (ACA) during the COVID-19 pandemic:

Statement from Sean Rankin, the Executive Director at the Democratic Attorneys General Association

“As our country is in the grip of a worsening global pandemic, the President and Republican Party appear to be more focused on blocking Americans’ access to health care than making sure that more Americans have the care they need at this difficult time. Democratic Attorneys General are the last line of defense for the ACA and the millions of Americans, including those with pre-existing conditions, who rely on the ACA for health care. Trump’s gross negligence and the immoral lawsuit led by Republican Attorneys General are a double-whammy: they put people’s lives at risk in this pandemic now and put American families’ economic well-being in jeopardy later when they will have to pay for care out-of-pocket because they were not given access to health coverage.”

“Health care was already the number one issue for voters going into the Fall, and this pandemic puts the importance of protecting health care and the dismantling of our health system by Trump and Republican AGs in clear focus. DAGA will educate voters on which Democratic leaders are fighting to protect their health care and which Republican leaders are putting the lives and economic futures of American families at risk. To all those families and the millions of Americans who are worried about their health care and their safety right now, we promise that Democratic AGs will continue fighting for you.”

Additional Background:

• Just last week, President Trump doubled down on his administration’s effort to eliminate health care for millions of Americans.
• In November, there will be 12 AG seats on the political map, including four incumbent Republican AGs who are a part of the GOP lawsuit to destroy the Affordable Care Act: Indiana AG Curtis Hill, Missouri AG Eric Schmitt, Utah AG Sean Reyes, and West Virginia AG Patrick Morrisey. They all are Democratic targets.
• A Democratic AG coalition led by California AG Xavier Becerra is fighting in court to save health care for 20 Million Americans and protect coverage for 133+ Million Americans with pre-existing conditions. Democratic AGs are standing up to President Trump and 17 Republican AGs (and one GOP governor) who filed a lawsuit that would gut critical care for families and communities everywhere. The case, now called California vs. Texas, will be heard by the U.S. Supreme Court next term.
• As part of the committee’s effort to educate voters on the vital role Democratic AGs are playing in the health care debate, DAGA released a new video that explains how the lawsuit moved through the courts, where we are today, and how voters can get involved in the fight to protect health care.

For more information on Democratic AGs and the health care fight, check out this backgrounder.