Rep. Rick Larsen, WA-02, issued the following statement today after voting against legislation that would allow cancelled health insurance plans to be sold through 2014.

“Washington state’s early success in implementing the Affordable Care Act is a model for the rest of the country. More than 77,000 people have already enrolled in quality health care coverage, making Washington the third highest performing state in the country.

“I have been heartened to hear from many constituents that they have been able to find cheaper and better coverage through Washington Healthplanfinder. I encourage those people whose plans have been cancelled to take a look at their options in the marketplace. We are fortunate that our health insurance marketplace is offering 46 quality plans, and that most people will be able to get tax subsidies to help pay for these plans.

“The bill allowing insurance companies to keep selling cancelled health insurance plans would undermine this progress. If we extend old plans, insurers would again be able to discriminate against people with preexisting conditions. Insurers would be able to force women to pay more than men for the same coverage. Insurers would be able to cap the amount of health care you can get each year. This bill could wreak havoc on the insurance market and increase rates for everyone. This bill is bad policy, pure and simple.

“I support Insurance Commissioner Kreidler’s decision to reject these proposals and move forward in implementing the meaningful improvements to the individual insurance market.

“I have heard from many constituents who are upset because their insurance plans have been cancelled. The promise to keep insurance, while true for most people, has not held up for all.

“Health insurance cancellations are not new. Before the Affordable Care Act, I regularly received letters and phone calls from people upset that health insurers were discontinuing their plans or hiking their rates. These problems are exactly why we passed the Affordable Care Act. Now people will no longer be kicked off their plans when they get sick, and premium increases have to be justified based on actual health care cost increases.

“We need to move forward on health care reform and improve the law where necessary.”