Biden Cracks Down On ‘Junk Insurance Plans’ Amid Obamacare War With Trump
The Biden Administration announced it would limit short-term health insurance plans to a maximum of four months, instead of four years, as the Trump administration allowed.
The White House claimed four-year plans allowed insurance providers to evade consumer protections under Obamacare, such as denying care based on pre-existing conditions, for a longer period of time, often leaving “families surprised by thousands of dollars in bills.”
The rule also requires insurance providers to clearly explain the limitations of their plans and provide information about how to seek more comprehensive coverage.
The rule change follows Biden’s calls on Tuesday to extend tax credits, worth up to 8.5% of an individual’s income, under the Affordable Care Act that are set to expire next year.
In making the announcement during a campaign event Tuesday in North Carolina, Biden accused “Trump and his MAGA friend in Congress” of wanting to “get rid of the ACA.”
Trump pushed back against the claims on Truth Social Tuesday, alleging he’s not “running to terminate the ACA, AS CROOKED JOE BUDEN DISINFORMATES AND MISINFORMATES ALL THE TIME,” adding that he wants to “make the ACA, or Obamacare, as it is known, much better, stronger and far less expensive.”
KEY BACKGROUND
Trump’s statements Tuesday mark a reverse course from his promise in November to find “alternatives” to the Affordable Care Act, he wrote on Truth Social, while criticizing Republicans who voted “not to terminate it.” Trump’s push to repeal the Affordable Care Act was a key promise of his 2016 campaign. An effort to repeal the plan altogether or approve an alternative plan or scaled-back version of the existing program failed to pass the Senate in 2017 when three Republicans—including Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., who memorably gave a thumbs down—voted with all Democrats to reject the proposals. Trump, at the time, accused senators who voted against the repeal or replacement of letting “the American people down,” he tweeted, adding “as I said from the beginning, let ObamaCare implode, then deal. Watch!” As president, Trump took various steps to water down the Affordable Care Act and offer alternatives, including a 2018 executive order that allowed small businesses to coalesce to provide “association plans” that circumvent protections under the Affordable Care Act.
BIG NUMBER
21 million. That’s the number of people who have signed up for Affordable Care Act coverage in 2024, a record number and more than 5 million more who signed up last year. More than 45 million people are enrolled in ACA coverage, according to the Biden administration.
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