“SIGN THE ACA DISCHARGE PETITION”: New Yorkers Rally From Long Island to the Hudson Valley With a Very Simple Message
With the Government Reopened at Last, House Republicans Continue to Block Efforts to Extend Health Care Tax Credits
NANUET & HAUPPAUGE, NEW YORK — Today, with the government reopened and Congress back at work after a two-month paid vacation, New Yorkers gathered in both Nanuet and Hauppauge with a simple message: sign the ACA discharge petition and extend health care tax credits.
The government shut down because Republicans like Reps. Mike Lawler and Nick LaLota were unwilling to support an extension of the expiring health care tax credits, which run out at the end of the year. These credits help 140,000 New Yorkers afford their health insurance premiums. If allowed to expire, New York families could see their annual costs skyrocket by thousands, or even tens of thousands of dollars.
New Yorkers gathered in Nanuet with a simple message: sign the discharge petition and extend the ACA tax credits. | CREDIT: Empire State Voices
Throughout the shutdown, Reps. Lawler and LaLota jumped in front of every camera they could find, blaming Democrats and claiming deep concern for the people of their districts. Well, now is the time to put up or shut up. Speaker Johnson has refused to support a vote on extending these critical tax credits, leading Minority Leader Jeffries to put forward a discharge petition to force a vote to extend the ACA tax credits for three years. If these Representatives are truly concerned about the health care affordability crisis facing New Yorkers, they’ll sign on to the discharge petition and vote for the extension.
Speaker Johnson has refused to support a vote on extending these critical tax credits, forcing Minority Leader Jeffries to put forward a discharge petition. | CREDIT: Empire State Voices
“This whole thing started because people like Mike Lawler refused to support a long-term extension of these tax credits,” said Tina Rose, a healthcare worker from Congers. “But now that the shutdown is over, he has no excuse. Either he supports this discharge petition for an extension, or he’s revealed not to actually care about helping families across his district afford their health care. The ball is in his court.”
“Congressman LaLota sat back and did nothing for two months, raking in the paychecks while families in his district worried about how they would afford both their groceries and health insurance,” said Shoshana Hershkowitz, a resident of Port Jefferson. “Now, he’s back in Washington with a simple choice in front of him: sign the discharge petition and fight for an extension of these health care tax credits, or sit back and do nothing yet again as his constituents suffer.”
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About Empire State Voices
Empire State Voices (ESV) is a multi-year campaign dedicated to amplifying the voices of everyday working New Yorkers. ESV is fighting for economic policies that make life more affordable for constituents and holding members of Congress across the state accountable when they fail to do the same.
