If congressional Republicans succeed in their efforts to repeal the ACA, economic disparities among the nation's rich and poor could increase, according to analysis from Bloomberg.
Health and economic inequality are linked, according to Barbara Wolfe, PhD, a health economist at the University of Wisconsin-Madison.
"We do know that people who are healthier are more productive and are more likely to work," said Dr. Wolfe, according to the report. "We also know that the people who are most affected by the expansion [of health coverage], and would be most affected by cutbacks, are people with lower incomes."
In its current form, Senate Republicans' Better Care Reconciliation Act would cut taxes for the wealthy and the medical industry, decrease subsidies for insurance coverage and cap the growth of federal spending on Medicaid. Cuts to Medicaid funding — which have been a point of contention between conservatives and moderates in the Republican Party — would "dwarf the increases that occurred through the ACA" for low-income and disabled people, Henry Aaron, PhD, a Brookings Institution economist, told Bloomberg.
A study of tax and death records published in 2016 in JAMA found the top 1 percent of earners in America live an average of nearly 15 years longer than the bottom 1 percent of earners. Income gains and health improvements are concentrated at the top of the income scale.
However, some conservatives argue that expanding healthcare coverage does not improve health, and the JAMA analysis did not find coverage was meaningfully linked to extended life expectancy.
Read the full report here.