WASHINGTON, DC – Representative Yvette D. Clarke criticized an attempt by Republicans in the House of Representatives to repeal the Affordable Care Act today, which was enacted by Congress in 2010 and held constitutional by the Supreme Court last year.

The vote of 229 to 195 was the thirty-seventh effort to repeal the Act, which has improved health care for our families and our communities. More than 105 million people have received preventative services under the Act, and millions of young adults have access to health care under insurance plans in which their parents are enrolled.

“The Affordable Care Act has already provided benefits – benefits that help people in their daily lives – for millions of Americans,” said Representative Clarke. “Access to critical services – such as primary care visits, family planning services for men and women, and lower prices on prescription drugs for seniors – has been substantially improved.”

In addition, the Affordable Care Act will soon prohibit the denial of health insurance coverage based on pre-existing conditions and allow millions of Americans to purchase health insurance, with subsidies for low-income and middle-income families.

Representative Clarke continued: “Republicans have claimed that the supporters of this Act want the federal government to control health care. I disagree. We believe that the American people, rather than insurance companies, should have the freedom to choose their health care.”

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U.S. Representative Yvette D. Clarke is a member of the House Committee on Small Business, where she is the Ranking Member of the Subcommittee on Investigations, Oversight, and Regulations; Ethics; and Homeland Security, where she is the Ranking Member of the Subcommittee on Cybersecurity, Infrastructure Protection, and Security Technologies. She represents several neighborhoods in central and southern Brooklyn, NY which includes Brownsville, Crown Heights, East Flatbush, Flatbush, Gerritsen Beach, Madison, Midwood, Ocean Hill, parts of Park Slope and Flatlands, Prospect Heights, Prospect-Lefferts Gardens, Sheepshead Bay, and Windsor Terrace.