Study: BCRA could cost almost 1.5 million jobs

If the Better Care Reconciliation Act were enacted in its current form, the U.S. economy could lose an estimated 1.45 million jobs by 2026, including 919,000 jobs in the health care sector, according to a report by researchers at George Washington University released yesterday by The Commonwealth Fund. In addition, gross state products could fall by $162 billion and state business output by $265 billion, the authors estimate. The report updates a June analysis by the same researchers that found the House-passed American Health Care Act could cost an estimated 924,000 jobs by 2026 and reduce gross state products by $93 billion and business output by $148 billion. “Although the Congressional Budget Office found that both the Senate and House bills had similar effects in increasing the number of uninsured, our analysis indicates that the Senate bill has the potential to be more damaging to states’ economies,” said lead author Leighton Ku, director of the Center for Health Policy Research at GW’s Milken Institute School of Public Health.