Could Obamacare repeal take away health benefits for Georgia seniors?

VIDEO- Affordable Care Act

The ongoing battle in Washington over how and when to repeal the Affordable Care Act -- and perhaps more importantly what to replace it with -- has focused largely on the future of the law's insurance exchanges and state Medicaid expansions.

But what has been little talked about is how gutting the health care law could affect the more than 55 million Americans -- including 1.5 million Georgians -- with Medicare.

IN-DEPTH: Georgians with Obamacare in the dark

GUIDE: The Affordable Care Act in Georgia

March 1, 2017, Lithonia: Concerned local seniors Linda Davis (left) and Dolores White both ask a question during a town hall discussing how repealing the Affordable Care Act could effect seniors, including changes to Medicare, at the Lou Walker Senior Center. Curtis Compton/ccompton@ajc.com

Credit: Curtis Compton

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Credit: Curtis Compton

The law in fact offers certain benefits for people on Medicare. For instance, seniors can get preventive screenings and annual wellness checks for free with no copays. Obamacare also helped to close the “doughnut hole” coverage gap in Medicare Part D prescription drug plans, which often made buying medications too expensive for people on fixed incomes.

More than 100 seniors gathered at a community center in Lithonia this week to learn how the GOP’s promise to repeal and replace Obamacare could affect them.