Brooklyn, N.Y. – Congresswoman Yvette D. Clarke today voted to protect families and children from substandard health insurance plans by opposing H.R. 3522, the “Employee Health Care Protection Act of 2013.”

The bill, which passed by a vote of 247 to 167, would allow insurance companies to charge women higher premiums than men, charge higher rates for people with preexisting conditions, and impose limits on the amount of coverage a person receives in a single year.

“Just as we would not allow supermarkets to sell contaminated food or allow auto dealerships to sell cars that malfunction, we should not allow health insurance companies to sell policies that are inadequate,” said Congresswoman Clarke. “With the Affordable Care Act, Congress established that each American has a right to comprehensive health care. H.R. 3522 would undermine that right, by allowing insurers to overcharge women and people with pre-existing conditions, a category that includes almost everyone.  Also, the limits on coverage each year would prevent individuals from obtaining necessary medical care. This is yet another attempt by Republicans in Congress to dismantle Obamacare.”

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