Republicans in Congress aim for immediate repeal of the Affordable Care Act (ACA) when President-elect Donald Trump takes office, but may give themselves up to three years to come up with a replacement plan.
POLITICO reports the Republican strategy is to keep campaign promises to repeal the law while simultaneously giving themselves enough time to agree on a replacement plan and get some Democrats to support it before the clock runs out. The timeline would also put off the decision until after the next congressional elections.
“We’re talking about a three-year transition now that we actually have a president who’s likely to sign the repeal into the law. People are being, understandably cautious, to make sure nobody’s dropped through the cracks,” said Senate Majority Whip John Cornyn, R-Texas.
The strategy comes with a major flaw: Insurers involved in the ACA exchanges could opt not to participate in 2018 and beyond, potentially leaving millions of previously insured Americans without coverage options.
That very scenario is why some Republicans are starting to say “replace” needs to come before “repeal.” For more, click on the link below:
John joined TriMed in 2016, focusing on healthcare policy and regulation. After graduating from Columbia College Chicago, he worked at FM News Chicago and Rivet News Radio, and worked on the state government and politics beat for the Illinois Radio Network. Outside of work, you may find him adding to his never-ending graphic novel collection.