WASHINGTON ' Today, U.S. Senator Tom Udall issued the following statement about the impact that repealing Obamacare would have on New Mexico families and the state's economy:

"Before the Affordable Care Act, New Mexico had one of the nation's highest percentages of people without health insurance. For tens of thousands of citizens, everything but emergency health care was mostly out of reach. Today, thanks to the ACA, that number has been cut in half and continues to improve ' 360,000 New Mexicans gained coverage after the ACA was implemented and Medicaid was expanded. I have heard from countless people who are relieved that for the first time in their lives, they can see a doctor without worrying about going broke. And while our state's overall economy has lagged, the ACA has been an economic driver for New Mexico. Seven of the top 10 fastest-growing job categories in the state are in the health care field, and overall, one in five jobs is related to health care.

"For those concrete, measurable reasons, I strongly believe that Washington Republicans' plan to repeal the ACA would be a public health, economic and jobs disaster. Repeal threatens to eliminate health care access for tens of thousands of New Mexicans and cost our state $2.2 billion in lost funding annually by 2019. Even more shockingly, Donald Trump and Washington Republicans have no plan to protect people or replace it. New Mexico did the right thing by expanding Medicaid and setting up a state health insurance exchange, and all New Mexico leaders should speak with a unified voice in saying that recklessly repealing the ACA would cause serious damage to New Mexico families and our economy."