Repealing ACA Could Cost LI Millions, Take Insurance from Hundreds of Thousands: Cuomo

Gov. Andrew Cuomo released an assessment Wednesday stating that if the Affordable Care Act, commonly known as Obamacar, is repealed, it could cost New Yorkers billions and take health insurance from 2.7 million people.

Outside of New York City, Long Island would be hit hardest by the repeal. Nassau and Suffolk counties had some of the highest health care enrollment numbers once the ACA went into effect.

"The cost of a repeal of the Affordable Care Act, to state and local budgets and to the New Yorkers who depend on its health care coverage, is simply too high to justify," Cuomo said. "Since its implementation, the Affordable Care Act has become a powerful tool to lower the cost of health insurance for local governments and New Yorkers, and it is essential that the federal government does not jeopardize the health and livelihoods of millions of working families."

Many Republicans, foremost among them President-Elect Donald Trump, have been critical of the ACA for years. They have tried for years to repeal the ACA, and have vowed to do so with the new Republican majority in Congress.

Trump took to Twitter on Wednesday to again bash the ACA.

According to Cuomo, the NY State of Health, New York's exchange where people could shop for insurance, cut the number of uninsured people in the state in half, from 10 percent to 5. Repealing the ACA could costs all those people their insurance, he said.

On Long Island, that means hundreds of thousands of people could lose coverage. In Nassau, 133,324 could potentially lose health insurance. And the number is even higher in Suffolk, with 152,631 people at risk.

Repealing the ACA will also impact county budgets across the state. Counties have been able to use the additional federal Medicaid funding through the ACA, which goes to directly to counties and helps to lower property taxes. Without the funding, the costs would fall to counties. A repeal of the Affordable Care Act would result in a total loss of $595 million in funding to New York.

For Long Island, that would result in tens of millions of dollars lost. Nassau County would lose $17,866,829 in Medicaid funding, the governor said, and Suffolk would lose $18,310,813.

"In addition to providing care to those in need, hospitals are major employers in communities all across the state," said Bea Grause, president of the Healthcare Association of New York. "Repeal of the ACA could have tremendous consequences for the delivery of healthcare and also in terms of jobs and economic activity. It’s imperative that Congress be mindful of this reality."

Photo: Gov. Cuomo's Office