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A Resolution of the County of Allegheny, Commonwealth of Pennsylvania urging the United States Congress to Quickly End the Costly and Disastrous Federal Shutdown by Passing Federal Appropriations Legislation that Preserves Access to Affordable Health Care for Millions of Americans
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WHEREAS, the people of the United States have tirelessly labored to expand access to affordable health care; and
WHEREAS, access to affordable health care is critical to advancing the public health, safety, and welfare of Allegheny County’s residents; and
WHEREAS, in the United States, health insurance is offered through a patchwork of private and public sources including employer-provided, public marketplace enabled, Medicaid, and Medicare; and
WHEREAS, the Affordable Care Act of 2010 was passed with two primary goals, slowing the growth rate of healthcare spending and increasing access to health care by, among other things, creating state health insurance marketplaces and expanding Medicaid eligibility; and
WHEREAS, Allegheny County has more than 240,000 Medicaid and Medical Assistance enrollees, totaling almost a fifth of the county’s population, all of whom deserve access to high-quality healthcare; and
WHEREAS, the Pennsylvania General Assembly, in a bipartisan spirit, unanimously passed a law in 2019 creating Pennie, Pennsylvania’s health insurance marketplace for affordable and high-quality health insurance, to provide access to health insurance for entrepreneurs, small business owners, farmers, gig workers, and other working individuals without health insurance from another source, such as their job, Medicaid, or Medicare; and
WHEREAS, in 2021, the U.S. federal government created enhanced premium tax credits to provide the financial assistance needed to increase access to affordable, high-quality health insurance plans; and
WHEREAS, in 2025, roughly half a million Pennsylvanians - including more than 50,000 in Allegheny County - enrolled in a health insu...
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