WASHINGTION – Today, U.S. Senator Chris Murphy (D-Conn.), leader of the Senate Democrats’ #ACAWorks campaign, released the following statement after House Republicans unveiled a 2016 budget proposal that would completely repeal the Affordable Care Act (ACA). This is the more than 50th misguided attempt by Republicans to repeal or undermine the ACA.

Yesterday, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services announced that the ACA has provided health insurance coverage and new benefits to 16.4 million American adults, bringing about the largest drop in the number of uninsured in four decades.

“This week we learned that more than 16 million Americans now have health coverage thanks to the Affordable Care Act. We learned that the number of uninsured has plummeted faster than at any time in the last 40 years. And we learned that the House Republican budget unveiled today repeals the law and takes insurance away from more than 16 million Americans.

“When I talk with people in Connecticut, they know this issue isn't about partisan politics, but the real lives of the kids, moms, dads, and grandparents who now have insurance. I've talked with so many who, before the Affordable Care Act, lived every day with the enormous burden of knowing they were one accident or illness away from total financial ruin. I don't understand why Republicans think it's a good political strategy to take health insurance away from millions of families and put insurance companies back in charge of patients' lives."