Asian Americans will feel brunt of hidden realities of GOP's tax reform

FOR MANY PEOPLE, it's hard to get past the talking points to find out what the real impact of the Republican tax reform bill will have on individuals and their families. The tax bill passed by both houses of Congress Wednesdy (Dec. 20) is supposed to be about pocketbook issues, but hidden in the 500-page bill are measures that will hurt Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders. 

In the end, Social Security, Medicaid and Medicare -- the real targets of the GOP -- are at risk.

Instead of a real middle-class tax cut, the overwhelming majority of the benefits of this bill — an astounding 83% — go to the top 1% over the next decade. With corporate profits at an all-time high, this plan permanently lowers the corporate tax rate and increases taxes on 57% of middle-class Americans over the next decade. 

In states with a high number of Asian/Americans, including California, New York and Hawaii, many families will also see a tax increase as a result of changes to the state and local tax deduction. Coincidentally, they also overwhelmingly voted for Democrats in 2016.

Health care

Unable to repeal the Affordable Care Act after over 70 attempts, the Republicans sought to sabotage the ACA by taking away its primary funding mechanism.

Donald Trump gloated Wednesday (Dec. 20) when he pointed to the healthcare changes contained in the tax bill, saying the elimination of the Affordable Care Act's individual mandate amounts to a repeal of Obamacare.

"The individual mandate is being repealed, that means Obamacare is being repealed because they get their money from the individual mandate," Trump said.

Uh ... no. As usual, Trump is wrong. The bill doesn't repeal Obamacare, but it does weaken it considerably. Potentially, over 1.2 million AAPI enrollees in the ACA could be adversely affected.

“In order to include tax loopholes for the wealthy, this bill removes a crucial element of the Affordable Care Act – the individual mandate—and will undoubtedly destabilize health insurance markets and cause millions to lose coverage,” said Kathy Ko Chin, president and CEO of the Asian Pacific Islander American Health Forum.

The loss of the mandate means younger, healthy people will think they don't need insurance and will thus, opt out. 

Many people pay insurance premiums for years and never file a claim. In the case of the ACA, this can lead younger and generally healthier people to think they´re wasting money and cause them to cancel their coverage. In the event they suffer a loss, however, they must pay the full cost themselves. But, if you are young, you think you're invincible and you're willing to take that risk.

When anyone buys an insurance policy, you´re buying protection. You´re protected against unexpected medical costs, whether you ever actually use the coverage or not.

With the expected loss of younger people essentially supporting the system, insurance companies will have to raise their rates to the point where over 13 million people will no longer be able to afford health insurance. 

AAPI have always had a favorable view of the ACA. It's difficult to determine why this is so but some say people are attracted to the ability to keep young adults (up to 26 years of age) under the family coverage and the fact so many AAPI have small businesses that can't afford the expensive private insurance plans but can afford the ACA.

The available data suggest that Asian Americans have obtained health insurance through the marketplaces created by Obamacare at a higher rate than other groups. Thus, if Obamacare were repealed, Asian-Americans might see their dramatic gains in health insurance coverage reversed.

The ACA has helped to reduce the national uninsured rates for Asian Americans, Native Hawaiians and Pacific Islanders by 59%, the greatest reduction of any racial or ethnic group. Before the ACA, many groups, such as Koreans, Cambodians, Pakistani, and Bangladeshi Americans had uninsured rates above 20%. 

Immigration

In a press conference before convening a cabinet meeting Wednesday, Trump rambled on about the Damned Wall, need to cut out "chain migration" that allows immigrants to bring over their family, and he expressed his disdain for a "visa lottery."

“They’re not putting their best people in the lottery,” he said of some unspecified countries. “It’s common sense . . . They put their worst people into the lottery.”

As onerous as those proposals are, they had nothing to do with the just passed tax bill. Perhaps Trump just wanted to rile up those voters who are having second thoughts about him because the tax changes would benefit Trump and his rich pals but are still xenophobes.

However, the bill does impact those tax filers who use the Individual Taxpayer Identification Number — most of whom are undocumented. They would need to provide Social Security numbers for each child in order to claim the refundable part of the credit, which kicks in when the credit exceeds the filer's total tax liability. The Senate version would require an Social Security number for the regular credit as well.

According to Samantha Vargas Poppe of the Latino advocacy group UnidosUS, the change would directly impact about a million undocumented children. But it could also hurt those born in the United States whose non-citizen siblings are no longer eligible for the credit. That income hit would impact the whole family.

In addition, the House bill tightens up the rules for the Earned Income Tax Credit in such a way that immigrants covered by the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program will no longer be able to receive the credit when their work authorization expires. The Trump administration announced in September its decision to terminate the program, which means those immigrants will lose their protected status over the next few years unless 
Congress intervenes.

"Instead of passing a clean DREAM Act for undocumented youth at risk of detention and deportation, the GOP continues to prioritize the insatiable greed of corporations and billionaires at the expense of those fighting for their lives," said Kim Geron, 1st vice president of Asian Pacific Americans Labor Alliance. 

Social safety net at risk

"Congressional leaders have acknowledged the incredible $1.5 trillion deficit caused by this bill and have already promised to close that deficit by attacking programs that millions of Americans are relying on to be able to eat and count on coverage for their children through SNAP and Medicaid," said APA Health Forum's Chin. 

"It is a shameful day that our leaders in Washington have chosen to prioritize tax cuts on the backs of low- and middle-income Americans.”

The tax bill will have a devastating impact on millions of working families. The wealthy and corporations benefit the most immediately. An analysis by the nonpartisan Tax Policy Center found that 83 percent of households in the top 1% would receive a tax break in 2018 with an average benefit of $193,380. For the middle 20 percent of earners, the average tax cut would be $930. Over half the bill's total benefits would go to the top 10 percent of earners.

In the longer term, the bill lays the groundwork for future attacks on the poor, disabled, elderly, and other vulnerable Americans. The bill will escalate the federal deficit (estimates range from $1.4 trillion by the Congressional Budget Office to over $2.2 trillion by the Center for Budget and Policy Priorities), and the Republicans will use the increased debt and the reduced tax as the excuse they need to defund safety net programs like Medicaid, Medicare, and Social Security.

"Congressional leaders have acknowledged the incredible $1.5 trillion deficit caused by this bill and have already promised to close that deficit by attacking programs that millions of Americans are relying on to be able to eat and count on coverage for their children through SNAP and Medicaid," said Chin. "It is a shameful day that our leaders in Washington have chosen to prioritize tax cuts on the backs of low- and middle-income Americans.”

“This is one of the greatest transfers of wealth in our nation’s history,” said Doreena Wong, Director, Health Access Project Director at Advancing Justice-Los Angeles. “This bill pays for huge tax cuts for the wealthiest Americans and large corporations by increasing the burden of working families. It would also dismantle the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (ACA) by repealing the individual mandate, reducing health care for 13 million Americans and raising premiums by an average of 10 percent.”

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APIA Health Forum: Trump tax bil will have a negative impact on health care.

SCREEN CAPTURE / NBC

Around 2:30 a.m., Dec. 2, the U.S. Senate approved the controversial tax reform bill.

The U.S. Senate passed a horrendous tax reform bill that will change America for decades if signed by Donald Trump. It was written up in secret, amended at the last minute and voted upon in the early morning hours of Saturday, Dec. 2.

Although called a tax bill, its impact on health care will impact Americans for decades by eliminated the individual mandate of the Affordable Care Act, sometmes referred to as Obamacare. 

RELATED: Asian American senators decry the tax vote

On Saturday afternoon, the Asian & Pacific Islander American Health Forum issued the following press release:

"Today, the Asian & Pacific Islander American Health Forum (APIAHF) released a statement following the Senate's passage of tax legislation, including an amendment to repeal the individual mandate of the Affordable Care Act (ACA). Due to the repeal, an estimated 13 million people will lose their health insurance.

"'It is shameful that in the midst of open enrollment as millions of Americans head to the Affordable Care Act's marketplace to get coverage they can rely on, the Senate has voted to partially dismantle that same coverage in order to pass tax cuts that benefit the wealthiest in our nation, while adding an estimated 1 trillion dollars to our deficit,' said Kathy Ko Chin, APIAHF president and CEO. 

"This is dangerous for communities, such as Asian Americans, Native Hawaiians, and Pacific Islanders, who disproportionately face disparities and barriers in accessing health insurance and utilizing health care. 
"The increase to the deficit will also lead to automatic future spending cuts to certain programs like Medicare and the Prevention and Public Health Fund. Health care must be affordable and available for all. We will work alongside other health advocates in calling on Congress to listen to their constituents and heed the call to protect our care.

"Since the ACA became law, the individual mandate has helped to reduce the uninsured rates for Asian Americans, Native Hawaiians and Pacific Islanders (AA and NHPI) by half. The Congressional Budget Office estimated repealing the mandate will lead to 13 million people losing their health insurance and premiums will increase by 10 percent. 

"Many AAs and NHPIs disproportionately experience a range of chronic conditions that, prior to the ACA, were considered pre-existing conditions that required routine access to preventive care and treatment. Before the ACA, many groups, such as Korean, Indonesian and Micronesian Americans had uninsured rates above 20 percent.

"The House plans to vote on the tax bill (this week) and must work with the Senate to reconcile differences. If passed, the bill will then move to President Trump for signature, setting the stage for further attacks on health care programs in 2018.

"APIAHF urges the House to reject the Senate Bill and to stand up for the constituencies they represent."

The House in a 222-192 vote on Monday (Dec. 3) voted to approve a motion to go to conference with the Senate on tax legislation.

The people responsible for Americans' health issued a joint statement this month, the American Psychiatric Association, American College of Physicians, American Congress of Obstetricians and Gynecologists, and American Academy of Pediatrics, among others, voiced strong opposition to the GOP's tax proposal.

The American Hospital Association approved of some portions of the bill that included the tax-exemption for nonprofit hospitals, but was also dismayed at the elimination of the individual mandate.

"We are also disappointed that the tax legislation passed with a provision that would eliminate the individual mandate, which would result in the loss of health insurance coverage for millions of Americans," said an AHA statement. "The goal of the ACA was to extend coverage and, as a result, millions have benefitted from access to needed care. We must protect that access to care for those who need it and ensure the most vulnerable patients are not left behind."

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Asian American senators react to the Senate Republicans' tax scam

IN THE MIDDLE of the night when America was asleep, Republicans passed a tax bill that could add over a trillion dollars to the national debt according the Congressional Budget Office.

The GOP presented a 500-page bill that was rammed through hours later even though no Senator had time to read the entire bill. Portions of the bill was done in unreadable hand writing. 

The three Asian/American senators voted against the bill and showed their disappointment in different ways. 

Sen. Mazie Hirono, D-Hawaii, in a tweet called the legislation "disgusting, disgusting."

Sen. Tammy Duckworth, D-Illinois, tweeted a picture of her daughter Abigail with a comment:

RELATED: AAPI adversely affected by tax bill

U.S. Senator Kamala D. Harris, D-Calif., a member of the Senate Budget Committee, voted against the bill along with every single Democrat and one Republican. She issued the following statement on the passage of the Republican tax plan.

“The tax plan approved (Dec. 2) by my Republican colleagues is shameful. Tonight, corporations and the top 1% of Americans won at the expense of middle-class families. This is wrong and does not reflect the best of who we are as a country.

“At a time when corporate profits are at an all-time high and pay for workers has stagnated, my Republican colleagues have given corporations and the top 1% of Americans a permanent tax cut. This plan does this by adding $1 trillion to the deficit and asking workers and middle class families to pay for it. We should not explode the deficit and pull the rug out from the middle class to give billions to those who already have so much.

“Under this bill, 572,000 tax payers making over $1 million a year will get $34 billion in tax cuts in a single year. If you’re a senior relying on Medicare, this tax plan puts you at risk by slashing Medicare by up to $410 billion over a decade, with more than $45 billion of those cuts hitting California. And because Senate Republicans couldn’t repeal the Affordable Care Act, they’re trying to take away the health care of millions of Americans and increase the premiums for millions of Californians, by repealing the individual mandate.

“Instead of playing politics with people’s lives, we should be delivering for the American people who have spoken loud and clear that this isn’t what they want. There is a better way to reform our tax code, one that is bipartisan, transparent, and fair for all Americans.”

The New York Times, not known for hyperbole and known as The Grey Lady for its underwhelming appearance and reluctance to sensationalize, calls the Senate tax bill passed by the Republicans, "The Biggest Tax Scam In History."

This is a terrible, terrible bill. One of the worst pieces of legislation ever conjured up. Not only is it bad, it is insidious and deceitful. 

The Senate's bill is a ticking time bomb. Thee worst impacts won't occur immediately.

• In 2025, those middle-class taxpayers who initially receive a token cut on their taxes will see them disappear as the tax cuts expire but the corporations continue to keep their cuts.
• With the ACA's individual mandate gone, the ACA will become too expensive for the majority of its enrolees. Thirteen million people will lose their healthcare but if the entire ACA goes under because of of the loss of the mandate, that number could be mean more 25 million without healthcare.
• As the national debt increases, the GOP solution will seek savings to compensate for the losses. They will be able to cut programs in other areas. That puts social security, Medicaid and Medicare in jeopardy, the programs Republicans have long sought to get rid of.

This plan will affect every single American: from our children and grandparents to teachers, first responders, and college students. 

Conceived behind closed doors, amended at the last minute and voted upon in the dead of night. This is no way to govern. It's irresponsible, unfair, and disrespectful to the American people.

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