The government shutdown may have ended, but US Rep. Jim McGovern says the battle over health care subsidies continues.
The deal signed into law by President Donald Trump does not include any guarantees that funding cuts to the Affordable Care Act will be restored. That was something most Democrats held as a priority to re-open the government.
McGovern said Democrats are introducing a discharge petition to force a vote on health care funding. He also said Republicans are to blame for rising costs.
"When it comes to passing tax cuts for multi-millionaires or billionaires Congress moves in a nano second to do it," he said. "But when it comes to helping regular people afford their health care, that's a problem? It just shows how screwed up priorities are."
McGovern voted against the legislation that re-opened the federal government. And US Rep. Richard Neal did so as well, saying in a statement, that Republicans refused to act on health care while taking the government hostage in the process.
"From slashing health care to driving up costs and keeping drug prices unaffordable, the Republican record of failure is as reckless as it is cruel, and the consequences will be devastating for millions," Neal said in the statement.
Sen. Ed Markey also released a statement condemning the vote.
“For six weeks, Trump and Republicans shut down the federal government, delaying SNAP benefits for hungry children, senior citizens, and families, preventing dedicated federal workers from doing their jobs and paying their bills, and putting the safety of our communities at risk," he said.
Markey said the Trump administration has caused "irreparable damage," but added that he is glad federal workers will be paid.
" I will not forget that they chose to shut down the government to take health care away from Americans – all to give tax cuts to CEO billionaires. Reopening the government does not change that ugly fact," he said. "Right now, families in Massachusetts and across the country are sitting down at the kitchen table facing the reality that the cost of their health care coverage will double or even triple next year if Congress does not act."