Obamacare Cancellation Is Dead (for Now) – This Is What It Means for Your Healthcare
Last night, in a gripping drama that entertains people who tweet late into the Senate vote, three Republicans voted against their party’s third and final health care bill, and the measure is officially overturned. So what is happening now?
Is this really the end?
Probably no. The adoption of any repeal of the affordable health care was a major promise of the campaign for the last seven years, and Republicans in both houses still want something to take. They just can’t agree on what. (After years of complaining that Obamacare had made coverage harder and increased premiums, they proposed bill after bill that would cut coverage and further increase premiums. Keeping promises in a way that keeps Republicans happy may actually be impossible. .)
Even if the ACA cancellation was completely dead, your health insurance isn’t always safe. The Trump administration has taken a number of steps that have made personal insurance a little more difficult and a little more expensive. The New York Times has a good summary of these steps and why they are important .
More importantly, the administration continues to threaten to end the cost-sharing payments that are shifting from government to insurers as a way of keeping premiums low. Without these payments, insurers may have to stop offering plans in a separate market; even in the midst of uncertainty, premiums have already risen. The Kaiser Family Foundation analyzes the situation here .
Yanking payments will only make things worse; but there is also speculation that the final no vote we just passed opens the door for some bipartisan patches to ensure the stability of insurance markets.
Anyone hinting what will happen next?
Our president tweeted that the government should: “Let Obamacare explode, and then we can agree.”
Representative Mark Meadows says House Republicans have begun work on yet another bill .
A bipartisan House group has gathered to talk about health care, but won’t say what they did .
At the moment, Mitch McConnell is not showing any of his cards. In a speech after the vote, he asked, “What are the ideas [of the Democrats]? It will be interesting to see what they offer as a way forward. ”