ONE YEAR LATER: Derrick Van Orden and Bryan Steil’s Big, Ugly Bill Remains Deeply Unpopular As Wisconsinites Suffer

The DCCC made clear that a vote for this Tax Scam would be the defining vote of Van Orden and Steil’s races – and that fact remains the same one year later. Here is why:

• More than 114,000 Wisconsinites will lose health coverage. Marketplace enrollment has fallen by 4.2 million people nationally, while an estimated 3.8 million Americans have lost Medicaid or CHIP coverage since the law took effect.
• Health care costs are soaring. Wisconsinites have been forced to pay more than 24% more for their monthly premiums in 2026 or abandon their plans altogether. Wisconsin also saw a 7% decrease in enrollment since last year when the ACA tax credits expired.
• Rural Wisconsin hospitals and health care clinics – already struggling – are even further at risk. Reporting found that “hospitals in Van Orden’s congressional district are projected to lose more than $42 million in annual revenue” thanks to his vote.
• This law benefits the richest of the rich – not regular American families. The nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office estimates that the “poorest households will end up with roughly $1,200 less each year on average, while the wealthiest Americans will gain about $13,600.”
• Millions have lost access to food assistance. Enrollment has fallen, with nearly 22,500 fewer people in Wisconsin receiving nutrition assistance.
• The Big, Ugly Bill remains deeply unpopular. Recent Navigator polling shows the law underwater by 11 points in battleground districts and 18 points nationally, underscoring the political liability Van Orden and Steil face.

KEY TAKEAWAY: Van Orden and Steil can lie all they want, but Wisconsinites see the truth, because they feel the reality – health care costs are rising and families are losing care, rural health care clinics are at risk, food is harder to put on the table, and life is getting more expensive.

DCCC Spokesperson Katie Smith:
“Derrick Van Orden and Bryan Steil passed the largest cut to Medicaid in history that is raising health care costs, risking rural health care, ripping food off kids’ tables, and making it harder for families to get by. Their vote put Washington ahead of Wisconsin and will be a defining moment why they lose this November.”

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