Tag: Trumpcare

How the latest effort to repeal Obamacare would affect millions

The following article by Simon Haeder was posted on the Conversation website September 19, 2017:

From left, Sen. Dean Heller, R-Nev., Sen. Bill Cassidy, R-La., Sen. Ron Johnson, R-Wis., and Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., hold a press conference on Capitol Hill in Washington, Wednesday, Sept. 13, 2017. AP Photo/Andrew Harnik

At the end of July, the nation held its collective breath as Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) looked poised to achieve his most formidable parliamentary accomplishment: the repeal and replacement of the Affordable Care Act.

But Republican hopes were dashed by one of their own, Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.), who cast the deciding vote that appeared to decisively derail the multi-year effort.

McCain called to return to “regular order,” to work through committees, to bring in and listen to experts, to be open and transparent, and perhaps most importantly, to at least listen to both parties. Continue reading “How the latest effort to repeal Obamacare would affect millions”

Five things to know about the new ObamaCare repeal bill

The following article by Rachel Roubein and Nathaniel Weixel was posted on the Hill website September 20, 2017:

The new ObamaCare repeal bill under consideration in the Senate includes some controversial policies that have divided Republicans in the past.

Some senators haven’t taken a position on the bill from Sens. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.) and Bill Cassidy (R-La.), saying that they have yet to fully digest the bill and how it would work.

In short: The bill ends federal funds for ObamaCare’s Medicaid expansion and the subsidies that help people afford coverage. Instead, the money would be converted into block grants and given to the states.

Here are five things to know about the legislation. Continue reading “Five things to know about the new ObamaCare repeal bill”

Jimmy Kimmel gets heated about health-care bill, says Sen. Bill Cassidy ‘lied right to my face’

The following article by Emily Yahr was posted on the Washington Post website September 20, 2017:

In May, late-night host Jimmy Kimmel delivered an emotional monologue as he revealed that his newborn son, Billy, was born with a heart defect that required immediate surgery. The operation was successful, but Kimmel was deeply shaken by the experience, which happened amid the debate over replacing the Affordable Care Act. Kimmel delivered a passionate plea about the astronomical costs of health care: “No parent should ever have to decide if they can afford to save their child’s life.”

Later that week, while talking about whether insurance companies should be able to cap payouts, Sen. Bill Cassidy (R-La.) coined the phrase “the Jimmy Kimmel test,” as in: “Would a child born with congenital heart disease be able to get everything he or she would need in that first year of life?” Cassidy then appeared on Kimmel’s show, and the senator reiterated the importance of making sure middle-class families could afford health care. Continue reading “Jimmy Kimmel gets heated about health-care bill, says Sen. Bill Cassidy ‘lied right to my face’”

Bipartisan Health Care Talks Shut Down Amid Rush to Repeal

The following article by Jason Dick and Joe Williams was posted on the Roll Call website September 19, 2017:

Sen. Lamar Alexander, R-Tenn., has halted a bipartisan effort to stabilize the health insurance market as Senate Republicans aggressively seek to repeal the 2010 health care law. (Tom Williams/CQ Roll Call)

A bipartisan effort to stabilize the health insurance markets suffered a potentially fatal blow Tuesday as Senate Republicans kicked into high gear their attempt to repeal the 2010 health care law.

Facing a Sept. 30 deadline to utilize the 2017 budget reconciliation process that would allow passage of the health care legislation without having to worry about the filibuster, GOP leaders and Vice President Mike Pence lobbied their rank and file to pass legislation spearheaded by Sens. Lindsey Graham of South Carolina and Bill Cassidy of Louisiana. It would repeal the 2010 law’s mandates for coverage, curtail the Medicaid program and block-grant money to the states to construct their own health care programs.  Continue reading “Bipartisan Health Care Talks Shut Down Amid Rush to Repeal”

Trump wants one last Senate push on Obamacare repeal

The following article by Burgess Everett and Josh Dawsey was posted on the Politico website September 5, 2017:

Credit: Tom Williams/CQ Roll Call file photo

President Donald Trump and some Senate Republicans are refusing to give up on Obamacare repeal, even after this summer’s spectacular failure and with less than a month before a key deadline.

The president and White House staff have continued to work with Republican Sens. Lindsey Graham of South Carolina and Bill Cassidy of Louisiana over the summer on their proposal to block grant federal health care funding to the states. And though the bill is being rewritten and Congress faces a brutal September agenda, Trump and his allies on health care are making a last-gasp effort. Continue reading “Trump wants one last Senate push on Obamacare repeal”

The Trump Premium Tax Will Increase Premiums Up to $2,500 Next Year

The following article by Sam Berger and Emily Gee was posted on the Center for American Progress website August 16, 2017:

Credit:  Tom Williams/CQ Roll Call file photo

Since he entered office, President Donald Trump has taken numerous steps to sabotage the Affordable Care Act (ACA) by driving up costs and driving out insurers. With the failure of ACA repeal in the U.S. Senate, Trump has threatened to accelerate his efforts. In particular, by undermining enforcement of the ACA’s individual coverage mandate and threatening to stop billions of dollars in cost-sharing reduction (CSR) payments that help lower consumers’ deductibles and copayments, Trump will significantly increase 2018 premiums.

The evidence from insurers’ initial rate filings show that individual insurers have added as much as 20 percent to account for lax enforcement of the mandate and as much as 23 percent to account for the lack of CSR payments. The end result is higher premiums for consumers and higher costs for taxpayers. The Center for American Progress estimates that uncertainty around CSRs and mandate enforcement will raise 2018 premiums for benchmark coverage an extra $1,061 annually for a 40-year-old and $2,491 annually for a 64-year-old. Continue reading “The Trump Premium Tax Will Increase Premiums Up to $2,500 Next Year”

White House Pushes ‘Implode’ Plan Amid Talk of Bipartisan Health Bill

The following article by John T. Bennett and Niels Lesniewski was posted on the Roll Call website July 28, 2017:

WH official: Trump’s tweet endorsing deal after Obamacare failure is preferred path

Credit: Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images

Amid pleas from Republicans and Democrats for the parties to begin work on a bipartisan health care bill, President Donald Trump and White House officials on Friday doubled down on his call to put off any action until Barack Obama’s 2010 law fails.

Ailing Arizona Republican Sen. John McCain shocked senators from both parties early Friday morning when he voted against a GOP leadership-crafted measure that amounted only to a partial repeal of the Affordable Care Act. Back in Washington after a brain tumor diagnosis, McCain made clear his vote was a shove for the entire Senate to get back to “regular order” — meaning hearings and floor debate — on health care and every other issue.

Following McCain’s dramatic vote on the Senate floor, several senators reported that Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Chairman Lamar Alexander of Tennessee is planning for just that. And Senate Minority Leader Charles E. Schumer, D-N.Y., said he saw Alexander and the committee’s ranking Democrat, Patty Murray of Washington, already talking in the wee hours of Friday morning. Continue reading “White House Pushes ‘Implode’ Plan Amid Talk of Bipartisan Health Bill”

U.S. Senate Republicans breathe life into health reforms that deserved to die

The following commentary by the Star Tribune Editorial Board was posted on their website July 25, 2017:

U.S. Sen. Mitch McConnell kicked off Tuesday’s debate on the Republican health reform plan by promising “We can do better than Obamacare.” It’s only fair that consumers and patients in Minnesota and elsewhere hold the Senate majority leader from Kentucky — and his party — to his word as debate barrels forward in Congress over plans to repeal the Affordable Care Act.

Will the GOP plan lower monthly premiums for health insurance? Will it lower deductibles that force policyholders to shell out thousands of dollars before coverage kicks in? Will the plan ensure affordable coverage for those with serious medical conditions, expand the number of plans to choose from, and strengthen Medicaid for kids, the elderly and the disabled?

This is what it means to do “better than Obamacare,” and there shouldn’t be any dispute about that. Health reform ought to serve consumers, not political needs. On Tuesday, Republicans selfishly cast aside this responsibility with a vote that breathed new life into their party’s secretive, shapeshifting reforms. Continue reading “U.S. Senate Republicans breathe life into health reforms that deserved to die”

Skinny Repeal Bill Would Raise Average Premiums by $1,238 and Increase Uninsured

The following article by Emily Gee and Thomas Huelskoetter was posted on the Center for American Progress website July 25, 2017:

Later today, the Senate is scheduled to hold its initial vote on repeal of the Affordable Care Act, although nobody, including the senators themselves, know which bill will be up for a final vote. Reportedly the options for consideration include a previously-unseen “skinny” version of ACA repeal that would only include a repeal of the coverage mandates and the medical device tax. But this skinny repeal bill, if passed, would still have negative effects on health insurance coverage. It would also discourage issuer participation in the individual market and increase the average marketplace premium by $1,238 next year.

The Congressional Budget Office (CBO) has estimated that repeal of the individual mandate would result in 15 million fewer Americans having health insurance a decade from now. By 2026, about 15 percent of the nonelderly population, or 43 million Americans, would be uninsured. Continue reading “Skinny Repeal Bill Would Raise Average Premiums by $1,238 and Increase Uninsured”

Skinny Repeal Bill Would Raise Average Premiums by $1,238 and Increase Uninsured

The following article by Emily Gee and Thomas Huelskoetter was posted on the Center for American Progress website July 25, 2017:

The Capitol is illuminated before sunrise in Washington. (Bloomberg)

Later today, the Senate is scheduled to hold its initial vote on repeal of the Affordable Care Act, although nobody, including the senators themselves, know which bill will be up for a final vote. Reportedly the options for consideration include a previously-unseen “skinny” version of ACA repeal that would only include a repeal of the coverage mandates and the medical device tax. But this skinny repeal bill, if passed, would still have negative effects on health insurance coverage. It would also discourage issuer participation in the individual market and increase the average marketplace premium by $1,238 next year.

The Congressional Budget Office (CBO) has estimated that repeal of the individual mandate would result in 15 million fewer Americans having health insurance a decade from now. By 2026, about 15 percent of the nonelderly population, or 43 million Americans, would be uninsured. Continue reading “Skinny Repeal Bill Would Raise Average Premiums by $1,238 and Increase Uninsured”