President Donald Trump signaled his support Tuesday for a Republican alternative to the pandemic-era extra Obamacare subsidies Democrats championed during the government shutdown earlier this year.
“Well, I like the concept,” the president said when asked about the bill, which Sens. Mike Crapo, R-Idaho, and Bill Cassidy, R-La., unveiled Monday.
“I don’t want to give the insurance companies any money,” Trump told reporters on Air Force One, Newsweek reported. “They’ve been ripping off the public for years.”
“The current system is not working to deliver health care at reasonable prices for everyday Americans,” White House spokesman Kush Desai told The Daily Signal in a statement Wednesday. “Democrats’ push to maintain these high prices by giving more money to insurance companies is not a real solution for President Trump.”
“The President has instead focused on lowering prescription drug costs by hammering out deals with pharmaceutical companies, as well as taking on waste, fraud, and abuse in the system to deliver results for patients, and will continue to deliver policy solutions that lower costs in the healthcare market for the American people,” Desai added.
The government shut down on Oct. 1 after Democrat senators refused to support a “clean” Continuing Resolution that would fund the government at Biden-era levels until Congress could pass annual spending bills. Democrats demanded an extension of extra COVID-19 pandemic-era subsidies that are set to expire at the end of the year.
Democrats ultimately agreed to fund the government in exchange for a promise that the Senate would hold a vote on extending the subsidies.
The Health Care Freedom for Patients Act, the Crapo-Cassidy bill, presents an alternative to the Democrats’ proposal, which Crapo and Cassidy claim would “send billions of tax dollars to giant insurance companies without lowering insurance premiums.”
By contrast, they claim their bill sends money directly to patients via a health savings account, on the stipulation that the funds cannot be used for abortion or gender transitions.
They also claim the bill would lower insurance premiums by funding cost-sharing reduction payments, would allow access to low-cost catastrophic plans, would prevent illegal aliens from accessing Medicaid by requiring states to verify citizenship and immigration status, and would stop taxpayer funding for gender transition services under Medicaid.
“Giving billions of taxpayer dollars to insurers is not working to reduce health insurance premiums for patients,” Crapo said in a news release on his proposal. “We need to give Americans more control over their own health care decisions.”
Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., said of the Crapo-Cassidy bill, “their phony proposal is dead on arrival.”
“Democrats have put forward the cleanest, fastest, most realistic solution: a three-year extension of the current tax credits, no gimmicks, no poison pills,” he said Tuesday. He called the proposal “the only realistic path left to prevent premiums from going up.”
Sen. Rick Scott, R-Fla., and Rep. August Pfluger, R-Texas, introduced another proposal, the “More Affordable Care Act.”
The Scott bill “takes a commonsense approach to fix Obamacare and lower costs by encouraging innovation at the state level, stopping fraud and abuse in the system, increasing competition in the health insurance and provider market, and giving the American people the ability to spend health care dollars in the way that best meets their individual needs,” a news release from Scott’s office reads.
The Scott-Pfluger proposal would create a “Health Freedom Waiver Program” allowing health insurance to be sold across state lines; Trump Health Freedom Accounts, a health savings account that would be available through the waiver program; enhance the Obamacare small business tax credit; and codify Trump’s executive order on health care price transparency into law.
Tyler O’Neil is senior editor at The Daily Signal and the author of two books: “Making Hate Pay: The Corruption of the Southern Poverty Law Center” and “The Woketopus: The Dark Money Cabal Manipulating the Federal Government.”
Reprinted with Permission from The Daily Signal – By Tyler O’Neil
The opinions expressed by columnists are their own and do not necessarily represent the views of AMAC or AMAC Action.
Can someone please show me where in the Constitution it says that the Federal Government is obligated to subsidize anything, much less healthcare? I could be wrong (but I’m not), but the Constitution states that any power not specifically granted to the federal government is the pervue of the states. If a state wants to give away healthcare, housing, or food stamps, they can go for it. Don’t expect other states to contribute to the bad decisions made on the state level.
The BOTTOM LINE is that the Democrats will (want to) shut down the government again as they will pout about not being able to keep the expensive “Obama Care” so they can keep ripping off the taxpayer and filling up their pockets with $$$$$ along with the insurance companies. The Democrats continue to battle to upset President’s agenda to fix the government. Just a delaying action hoping that the midterm elections will swing their way as to halt President Trump’s agenda.
Some one should ask the democrats: “Why does the ‘Affordable Health Care Act’ need a subsidy to make it affordable?”
I believe that the democrat party must have skin in this insurance game. Because no one else does. We now have the most expensive, and the least care, ever, in my long memory. The ACA was supposed to be helpful for those who could not afford market rate care, well they still cannot get timely care. Also existing conditions, available only if you can afford the premium. I like the Senator Scott plan.
Given the falling birthrate, it’s a pity the bill doesn’t include 100% coverage for all the medical costs of childbirth including pre and post natal expenses.
Trump knows this is the fastest way to destroy the democratic party which is why Chuck Shamer is so against it. If you take away all the Obamacare subsidies, the democratic party loses their funding source for all the “Non-profits” which fuel the democratic voting base. There’s no way democrat senators and house members are going to go for this. Would it work, absolutely, for the American people. Do the democrats care? No. That’s why this is so sad. They’d rather hurt the American people than do right by them and everyone should be held accountable for their vote!
I like the idea of a health savings plan from the government that would allow unlimited eye care and dental care, and allow the unused portion to rollover into the new amount for the next year. Think about cutting the insurance companies out of our health care who took money to lower costs, and raised costs instead. Personally, I hate being told which doctors I can consult, and when.
Senator Scott’s bill is more in line with republican and national values. It is also the most sensible and practical of the two GOP proposals. Furthermore, it is far more flexible and less contentious.
I think dental care should be included in all health care insurances…
Very glad to hear they are ruminating and brainstorming on a solution to the healthcare crisis. It is a critical topic for many Americans. The Scott-Pfluger proposal has merit!
this is a simple math issue. Stop the subsidies and the insurance companies will lower rates to attract people to buy their insurance. As long as the government subsidizes there is no reason for the insurance companies to be competitive.
In addition, stop paying for transgender care as this is choice. It should be treated the same as someone with cancer who did not have a choice. Stop paying for illegal immigrants, send them home, and stop paying for drug addicts and homeless people who are a major burden on out society. Once the government does this costs for healthcare will come down for working Americans. In other words, stop all care for grifters, if they do not work they suffer.