Trump administration cuts grants to help people get Obamacare

[July 11, 2018] WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The Trump administration is cutting most of the funds previously provided to groups that help people get health insurance under the Affordable Care Act and will push them to promote plans lacking the law's benefits and protections, a government agency said on Tuesday.

Under the latest cuts, so-called navigators who sign up Americans for the ACA, also known as Obamacare, will get $10 million for the year starting in November, down from $36.8 million in the previous year, according to a statement by the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS).

This follows a reduction announced by the CMS last August from $62.5 million, along with an even bigger cut to advertising for enrollment, and represents the latest in a series of moves to weaken the ACA by the administration of President Donald Trump.

Navigators will be "encouraged to demonstrate how they provide information to people who may be unaware of the range of available coverage options in addition to qualified health plans, such as association health plans, short-term, limited-duration insurance and health reimbursement arrangements," the CMS statement said.

On Saturday, the administration said it would suspend a program that was set to pay out $10.4 billion to insurers for covering high-risk individuals under Obamacare last year, saying that a recent federal court ruling prevents the money from being disbursed.

Health insurers warned that the action could drive up premium costs and create marketplace uncertainty.

Trump's administration has used its regulatory powers to undermine the ACA on multiple fronts after the Republican-controlled Congress last year failed to repeal and replace the law instituted by Democratic President Barack Obama. About 20 million Americans have received health insurance coverage through the program.

(Reporting by Eric Walsh; Editing by Lisa Shumaker)

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