EL PASO, Texas (KFOX14/CBS4) — The House of Representatives has passed a bill to extend the Affordable Care Act (ACA) tax credits for three years, maintaining the status quo for nearly 100,000 El Pasoans who rely on these credits to afford health insurance, according to Congresswoman Escobar.
The bill now moves to the Senate, where its future is uncertain due to insufficient Republican support for a clean extension. A small bipartisan group of senators is reportedly working on reforms to the ACA, potentially using this bill as a vehicle for their proposals, Escobar said.
Escobar urged El Paso residents to contact U.S. Sens. John Cornyn and Ted Cruz to advocate for the extension. “El Pasoans deserve to have senators who are fighting for their health insurance,” she said.
In other legislative news, Congress has passed a mini-bus of appropriations bills to prevent a government shutdown, securing funding for various community projects.
Additionally, Congress received a security briefing on the U.S. military’s recent bombing in Venezuela, which killed over 100 people and injured five U.S. service members, Escobar said.
In a separate issue, Escobar said there is growing concern over the federal government’s handling of a recent shooting involving ICE agents in Minnesota.
“Rejecting or not allowing the state to participate in a side-by-side investigation tells me that the federal government doesn’t want to be accountable to anyone,” Escobar said.
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