Repeal & Replacement of Affordable Care Act:

• On January 12, 2017, the Senate voted for a budget resolution that begins the process to repeal and replace the Affordable Care Act (also known as Obamacare). 
• Senator Lankford voted for the resolution to repeal and replace Obamacare, because the law has made health care very expensive and burdensome for the majority of Oklahoma families, businesses and charities.
• This budget resolution vote does not mean that health insurance plans in the Obamacare exchange will go away immediately. Throughout this year, Congress will debate and pass reforms that will provide a smooth transition to a better health care system and better coverage options for everyone.
• Senator Lankford believes Congress should fix Obamacare with the goal in mind of doing no harm to current enrollees as the transition occurs. 
• BACKGROUND: A budget resolution sets a budget framework for Congress and contains a legislative tool, known as reconciliation, that instructs certain committees to draft a bill that will repeal and replace Obamacare. If the bill meets the strict standards required to be considered under the reconciliation process, the Senate can pass the bill with a simple majority, rather than the 60 votes that is typically needed for Senate passage. This reconciliation legislative process is how Obamacare became law in 2010.

FACTS ABOUT OBAMACARE:

• Along with skyrocketing costs, in many parts of the country, Americans will have only one choice of insurer when they sign up for coverage on the public exchange.
• Oklahoma will see a rise of 76 percent with only one health insurer to offer plans through the federal exchange in 2017. In 2016, therse was a 35 percent increase.
• According to the Kaiser Family Foundation, average annual family health care premiums have increased $4,767 since 2009.
• Nationwide, Obamacare premiums will increase by an average of 25 percent in 2017.
• Last year, the Obama administration announced a 25 percent increase in premiums across the nation. 
• The nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office (CBO) determined that as individuals’ income rises, Obamacare triggers higher taxes and lower insurance subsidies. The CBO predicts that by 2025, Obamacare would cause employment to drop by the equivalent of 2 million full-time workers.
• In a 2015 International Foundation of Employee Benefit Plans survey, almost 57 percent of businesses stated that the biggest Obamacare challenge they faced related to administrative burdens, while 70 percent reported that Obamacare had a “very negative” or “somewhat negative” effect on their business.

What You Should Know About REAL ID:

• In 2005, Congress passed the Real ID Act of 2005, a law that acted on the 9/11 Commission’s recommendation that the federal government “set standards for the issuance of sources of identification, such as driver's licenses.” The Act established minimum security standards for state-issued driver’s licenses and identification cards and prohibits federal agencies and buildings from accepting licenses and identification cards from states that do not meet these standards. The law is meant to inhibit terrorists’ ability to get fake ID’s.
• For now, all Oklahoma identification will be accepted for access to federal buildings until January 29, 2017. If you must visit a federal building, and the only form of picture identification you have is an Oklahoma driver’s license or identification card, please call the facility before arriving to ask if they require another form of identification. You can contact our office for help with federal agencies by calling (405) 231-4941.
• Oklahoma is one of several states not compliant with the federal law, because Oklahoma’s licenses do not meet the threshold for security. In 2007, Oklahoma passed a law prohibiting compliance with the federal REAL ID Act, which is §47-6-110.3 of the Oklahoma State Code. In order for Oklahoma to comply with the federal REAL ID law, the State Legislature must pass legislation to repeal or amend the current state law. 
  • To find your State Representative and Senator in the Oklahoma State Legislature, CLICK HERE.
• On January 3, 2017, Governor Mary Fallin announced that Oklahoma has received a REAL ID extension through June 6, 2017, to meet the requirements in the REAL ID Act. 
• Access to airplane flights are not impacted until January 22, 2018.
• To find a facility close to you to obtain a US passport, which is an approved alternative form of ID, go to this State Department website by CLICKING HERE.  
• For more information from the Department of Homeland Security about REAL ID, CLICK HERE.

Fight Against ISIS/ISIL

• Senator Lankford believes a coalition force, that involves Middle East partners, must root out and utterly defeat ISIL with state-of-the-art intelligence and brute force. Our top priority must be to prevent ISIL's ideology and barbaric acts from coming to the United States.
• The President's de facto strategy of containment has failed. Senator Lankford believes President Obama's inadequate use of influence and lack of a strategy regarding ISIL has done nothing to stop growing angst and chaos in the region, and it has led to a vacuum in the region, which has been filled by ISIL.
• CLICK HERE to view a recent Senator Lankford TV interview on the November 13, 2015 Paris terrorist attack and our fight against ISIL.