--- title: Petition to Strip Congress of Health Coverage Nears 500,000 description: The petition says lawmakers should "commit to treating themselves just like those who will be impacted" by the repeal of Obamacare canonical: https://time.com/4704824/petition-remove-congress-health-care-subsidies/ author: Kevin Lui article:opinion: false article:content_tier: free article:published_time: 2017-03-17T03:31:04.000Z article:modified_time: 2026-10-07T07:20:49.958Z article:section: Politics og:title: Petition to Strip Congress of Health Coverage Nears 500,000 og:description: Congress has "received health benefits most Americans have not" petition says og:url: https://time.com/4704824/petition-remove-congress-health-care-subsidies/ og:site_name: TIME og:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt343ab5cae6e947ad/6988bec4ab6d7729236ad417/gettyimages-652358086.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 og:image:width: 4200 og:image:height: 2363 og:image:alt: Activists gathered near Brooklyn Borough Hall where the og:type: article twitter:card: summary_large_image twitter:title: Petition to Strip Congress of Health Coverage Nears 500,000 twitter:description: Congress has "received health benefits most Americans have not" petition says twitter:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt343ab5cae6e947ad/6988bec4ab6d7729236ad417/gettyimages-652358086.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  # A Petition to Remove Health Care Subsidies From Members of Congress Has Nearly 500,000 Signatures > Sponsored content. 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It explains the politics, personalities and power dynamics behind the headlines, twice a week. #### Where can I get analysis of Washington politics by email? D.C. Brief is TIME's free Washington politics newsletter, available at time.com/newsletters. It is written by a TIME senior correspondent who covers the capital full time. #### Who writes TIME's D.C. Brief? Philip Elliott, a senior correspondent at TIME, writes D.C. Brief. #### Is D.C. Brief free? Yes. D.C. Brief is free at time.com/newsletters. ### Sources * TIME Newsletters: [time.com/newsletters](/c/time-nl-dcbrief-2026q3/newsletters?i=c6e08c70-1507-4645-82e8-bb4f8fc07be1&cr=time-nl-dcbrief-2026q3-v1) ## Video: Calls for Congress to Lose Its Health Insurance Grows [Watch (HLS stream): Calls for Congress to Lose Its Health Insurance Grows](https://cdn.jwplayer.com/manifests/BEjk794I.m3u8) (1:03)  _Published 2017-03-17. A popular petition is calling for Congress to lose their health coverage._ by [Kevin Lui](https://time.com/author/kevin-lui/) ## Kevin Lui Mar 17, 2017 3:31 AM UTC by [Kevin Lui](https://time.com/author/kevin-lui/) ## Kevin Lui Mar 17, 2017 3:31 AM UTC As discussions surrounding Obamacare’s repeal and replacement take place in Congress, one Change.org [petition](https://www.change.org/p/remove-health-care-subsidies-for-members-of-congress-and-their-families), targeting the health care coverage lawmakers and their families currently receive, is gathering steam. “Some politicians cannot relate to the cost burden experienced by families across the nation because they’ve historically received health benefits that most Americans have not,” argues petitioner [Daniel Jimenez](http://www.oregonlive.com/trending/2017/03/portland%5Fman%5Fgathers%5Fover%5F3000.html). He says that his father passed away from cancer because of late intervention, and the current debate over the Affordable Care Act’s replacement reminds him of “whether he would have made it if he had early access to cost-effective health care.” “I want lawmakers to commit to treating themselves just like those who will be impacted by \[Affordable Care Act\] repeal or replacement,” he continues. “A lot of Members of Congress promote choice as an American value, which is all the more reason for them to have to continue to choose their own health coverage from the free marketplace.” The Congressional Budget Office’s report this week projects that the American Health Care Act, as the GOP health care bill is known, would cause 14 million people to [lose their health-insurance coverage](http://time.com/4700051/obamacare-repeal-cbo-congressional-budget-office-analysis/) by 2018. “If Congress is willing to drastically cut health care subsidies for most people, are they willing to have the same rules apply to them and their families?” asks Jimenez. 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