|
 Unable to win passage of legislation to dismantle the 2010 law in a
Congress led by his own party, Trump indicated he would take
unilateral action. He offered few specifics beyond saying his action
would let people cross state lines to obtain "great, competitive
healthcare" costing the United States "nothing."
The expected order would allow small businesses and individuals to
band together as associations to buy health insurance plans that
would be exempt from some Obamacare requirements. These include
mandatory coverage for 10 essential health benefits such as
maternity and newborn care, prescription drugs and mental health
treatment.
It would also expand the amount of time people can use short-term
medical insurance plans, which are cheaper than traditional plans
but cover a limited set of benefits. People could use those plans
for up to a year, compared to three months under current law.
"I'll also be signing something, probably this week, which is going
to go a long way to take care of many of the people that have been
so badly hurt on healthcare," Trump told reporters in the Oval
Office.
"With Congress the way it is, I decided to take it upon myself,"
Trump added, saying the plan is "largely worked out."
White House spokeswoman Sarah Sanders said Trump will make his
announcement "by the end of Friday."
Trump said his action would let insurers sell across state lines.
The association health plans, for instance, could be sold from a
state with fewer benefit requirements. Such insurance policies could
be cheaper than those that provide the full range of medical
coverage required under Obamacare, potentially making them
attractive to people in other states.
It is unclear when these plans would become available. It is
unlikely consumers could sign up for these plans during the 2018
open enrollment period, which begins Nov. 1.
Experts questioned Trump's authority to issue such an order that
would exempt some plans but not others from Obamacare rules rather
than pursuing the changes through legislation. The action could open
Trump to legal challenges from Democratic state attorneys general,
who have said they will sue Trump if he tries to destroy Obamacare.
The plans allowed under the order could lure young and healthy
people away from the individual insurance markets created by the
2010 Affordable Care Act, dubbed Obamacare. That could further
destabilize those markets, where insurers have already exited the
markets altogether, pared back offerings or hiked premiums because
of uncertainty caused by the Trump administration.
[to top of second column] |
Experts said Trump's plan could leave behind only the sickest people
in the Obamacare markets, raising premiums and effectively eroding
the law's protection that people with pre-existing medical
conditions cannot be charged more.
'HURT RATHER THAN HELP'
"There's a general belief that at every turn the federal government
is going to create regulations to hurt rather than help the
markets," said Craig Garthwaite, director of the healthcare program
at Northwestern University's Kellogg School of Management, referring
to the Trump administration.
"It unwinds the ability of people with pre-existing conditions to
get insurance under the ACA," Garthwaite said.
Republicans have failed to make good on their seven-year promise to
repeal and replace Obamacare, the signature domestic policy
achievement of Trump's Democratic predecessor Barack Obama. Gutting
Obamacare was a top Trump campaign promise.
Trump, who has called the law a failure and vowed to let it
"implode," has undermined Obamacare through regulatory and
administrative actions.
Last week, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services issued a
rule that will let businesses and non-profit organizations lodge
religious or moral objections to obtain an exemption from the law's
mandate that employers provide birth control for women in health
insurance with no co-payment.
Trump has declined to commit to making payments guaranteed to
insurers under Obamacare. The payments are estimated to be about $7
billion this year and help lower out-of-pocket medical costs for
low-income consumers. Insurers have cited that uncertainty in
exiting insurance markets or hiking premiums.
His administration has slashed the Obamacare advertising budget,
halved the open enrollment period and cut funding to groups that
help sign people up for insurance under the law.
(Reporting by Yasmeen Abutaleb and Jeff Mason; Editing by Will
Dunham)
[© 2017 Thomson Reuters. All rights
reserved.] Copyright 2017 Reuters. All rights reserved. This material may not be published,
broadcast, rewritten or redistributed. |
