Rep. Pete Aguilar released the following statement on Congressional Republicans’ decision to shut down the government rather than work with Democrats on a bipartisan funding bill that protects Americans’ health care: 

“America is facing dual health care and affordability crises that require immediate action. Yet today, Congressional Republicans chose to shut down the government, rather than work with Democrats to lower costs or protect Americans’ health care. 

“For months, Democrats have been sounding the alarm, imploring Republicans to work with us to undo their harmful cuts to Medicaid and extend the Affordable Care Act tax credits in order to prevent millions of Americans from losing their coverage.  

“Failure isn’t an option here. Republicans control the House, Senate and the White House. They could reverse course, reopen the government, and work with Democrats to save health care. 

“If they don’t, 15 million Americans will lose their health care, including up to 3.4 million Californians on Medi-Cal. Hospitals will close, children won’t get their medication, wait times will get longer, seniors won’t be able to see their doctors, and people will still get sick. 

“I’ll do everything in my power to ensure this doesn’t happen and will keep fighting for the Inland Empire every step of the way.”