Don’t be fooled—the debate over whether to scrap the health care law is not yet over, and what appears to be merely a question of timing is about much more than that. Republicans will have to tread a careful path that balances a desire to abandon Obamacare as soon as possible with the need to respect the reality that the complexities of changing the system will persist well beyond any near-term bill signing ceremonies. It’s true that widespread, sudden disruption of existing health insurance arrangements could short-circuit a workable transition to more market-oriented and less Washington-centric health policy reforms. While the risk of ending up on the merry-go-round of ACA replacement proposals lacking sufficient support, depth, or effectiveness is real, there are risks posed by the opposite reaction: the desire for quick and simple repeal.
. . .
President-elect Donald Trump lashed out at Democrats on Thursday over their efforts to preserve Obamacare, denouncing the measure as a “lie” as he called for a less expensive and more effective health care system. “The Democrats, lead by head clown Chuck Schumer, know how bad Obamacare is and what a mess they are in,” Mr. Trump wrote in the first of three posts on Twitter. “Instead of working to fix it, they do the typical political thing and BLAME,” Trump continued on Twitter. “The fact is Obamacare was a lie from the beginning. ‘Keep you doctor, keep your plan!’” He said it was time for Republicans and Democrats to work together on a “plan that really works — much less expensive & FAR BETTER!”
. . .
Republicans won the first skirmish in the Obamacare fight Wednesday, voting to begin debating fast-track budget procedures that, if successful, would allow the GOP to kill the 2010 health care law without having to face a Democratic filibuster in the Senate. The 51-48 vote, on the second day of the 115th Congress, underscores how serious Republicans are in making good on their repeal pledge. But it also signaled that Democrats are just as committed to defending the Affordable Care Act.
. . .
While the average estimate shows nearly 21 million people have benefitted from Obamacare, it’s important to note that some people currently enrolled in Medicaid could have enrolled in Exchange coverage with nearly full subsidization had their state not expanded Medicaid, and would likely be eligible for whatever new subsidy structure might replace the current system. Regarding those in the Individual Market, not all of these individuals are receiving subsidies and would therefore not be financially impacted by the repeal. Making reasonable assumptions and accounting for those who lost insurance because of the ACA, and setting aside any assistance that would be provided by ACA replacement policies, the number of people who, on net, are potentially at risk of being negatively impacted is likely closer to 13-14 million.
. . .
House Republicans say they aim to send an Obamacare repeal bill to the White House by Feb. 20, following a meeting with Vice President-elect Mike Pence.
“We want to have the budget on the president’s desk by the 20th,” Rep. Marsha Blackburn (Tenn.) said Wednesday after a House GOP conference meeting that Pence attended. “We’re going to be working to hit those benchmarks, and the pace of work is going to change significantly around here.”
House Speaker Paul Ryan’s staff pushed back on that timeline after the meeting, saying it was incorrect.
. . .
On January 3, 2017, Judge Margaret Sweeney of the United States Court of Claims certified Health Republic Insurance Company v. United States as a class action. This is one of more than a dozen cases that have been brought by insurers in the Court of Claims challenging the failure of the government to pay marketplace insurers amounts that they claim were due to them under the ACA’s risk corridor program. The class includes:
All persons or entities offering Qualified Health Plans under the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act in the 2014 and 2015 benefit years, and whose allowable costs in either the 2014 or 2015 benefit years, as calculated by the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, were more than 103 percent of their target.
. . .
President Obama and Vice President-elect Mike Pence both paid a visit to Capitol Hill Wednesday, in the first formal engagement over the future of the Affordable Care Act. Republicans finally have the power to repeal, but the question is whether they have the grit to replace ObamaCare.
Mr. Pence told Republicans that repeal and replace is the Trump Administration’s “first order of business,” while Mr. Obama ordered Democrats not to “rescue” the GOP by helping to pass a “TrumpCare replacement.” Going by his business background Donald Trump won’t mind putting his name on a health-care plan, or anything else, but Republicans need to appreciate the reality that they will soon own ObamaCare. Until they pass a coherent and market-oriented substitute, as a political matter ObamaCare is TrumpCare, like it or not.
. . .
Vice President-elect Mike Pence will rally House Republicans Wednesday morning on a plan to repeal Obamacare, POLITICO has learned — a counter-punch to President Barack Obama’s visit to the Hill the same day.
Pence will meet with the full House Republican Conference to talk about the party’s plan to dismantle Obama’s signature health care law, according to a House Republican leadership aide. The meeting is House Republicans’ first of the new Congress, which kicks off Tuesday.
. . .
Zeke Emanuel, one of Obamacare’s architects, tells NPR that there is possibility for bipartisan health care reform in replacing Obamacare. “I understand that the president-elect, Donald Trump, wants a bipartisan bill. He really does I think genuinely want a bill and a health care system that works for all Americans, that achieves universal coverage, no preexisting disease exclusions. And I think therefore there is some ray of optimism that we could actually get a compromise bill…The bill would have to construct both the repeal part but simultaneously the replacement part. And I think if you do it that way, you could begin to negotiate with Democrats.”
. . .