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WASHINGTON – Returning to a central issue of the 2018 campaign, the Democrats in the House on Thursday passed a bill to reverse Trump's administrative rules, which expand health care plans that do not are not required to meet the coverage prescribed by the Affordable Care Act.
The vote – 230 to 183 – was a blow against President Trump, who asked for explanations on the cover-up mandates of President Barack Obama's national achievement, while asserting that he had pledged to protect Americans with chronic diseases.
But it has served a broader political purpose by launching a House Democrats initiative on health care, an issue they see as critical to winning back the White House and keeping their gains in the House by 2020. Over the next two weeks, Democrats adopt a series of legislative measures to make it clear that even if they clash with the White House as a result of the findings of the Mueller report, they will continue to focus on proposals that help real people.
The bill would reverse a regulation passed in October 2018 by the Department of the Treasury and the Department of Health and Social Services, which expanded the eligibility criteria for states to receive exemptions from the Affordable Care Act for "Increase coverage options", especially with insurance plans offering more services. coverage limited to those consistent with mandates under the 2010 Health Act.
Another Democratic bill, to be voted next week, would eliminate a rule change from Trump's administration that extended the time limit for limited-term insurance plans. up to three years from three months – the plans of the Democrats call "the insurance of junk."
In total, a dozen health care bills are expected to be voted on in the next two weeks. This campaign aimed to establish the House democrats' record in health care in the run-up to next year's elections – and possibly to split the congressional Republicans, who claimed that "no one else is going to be in the House." they also wanted to preserve the protections for people with pre-existing health conditions or chronic diseases.
Other measures include restoring the funding used to help consumers find coverage under the Health Act and registering, new disclosure requirements for prescription drug reimbursement programs, several measures aimed at reducing the cost of drugs and increasing access to advanced drugs, called organic products, and the allocation of $ 10 billion annually in new "reinsurance" payments that would help reduce healthcare premiums by offsetting the costs of the most expensive claims.
Overall, the package is intended to build on the system established by the Health Act without disrupting the health care system of Americans who receive coverage through work or through a government program.
It is also an essential part of President Nancy Pelosi's political agenda, at a time when she rejected calls for more radical proposals, including the "One Pay Plan for All" plan supported by many Liberal parties. including the representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez. New York.
Ms. Pelosi takes a more measured approach. Some bills, such as the pre-existing package of conditions, aim to force Republicans to take tough votes on health care. Others, like drug bills, should get support from Republicans – and could even win the support of Mr. Trump, who said he wants to fight the cost of prescription drugs.
"All Republican speeches in 2018 indicated that they wanted to protect patients with pre-existing illness, even if they denigrated AC," said Ann McLane Kuster, Democrat of New Hampshire, which introduced Thursday's bill.
"I think, symbolically, this bill is the one that frames the rest of the problems and our goal of developing health care," she said. "It's also about delaying this government's attempts to sabotage the Affordable Care Act every step of the way."
The short-term plans targeted by the Democrats initially aimed to fill the gaps of people with insufficient coverage, not as sources of long-term coverage. Over the past two years, they have become one of the main ways to fight the health law.
Mr. Trump said that he was simply trying to reduce insurance costs for people who want to take the risk of not benefiting from the full coverage prescribed by the health act.
However, to date, no state has requested the exemptions covered by Ms. Kuster's bill and several states have reinstated the three-month limits that the Trump administration hoped to extend.
Nevertheless, rule changes are seen as a major threat to the survival of health law. As many as 1.6 million health care consumers could opt out of the regulated market by 2022, according to officials at the Federal Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services.
The removal of these rules – and the restoration of the existing system under the Health Act – would allow taxpayers to save approximately $ 8.9 billion over the next decade, achieved by keeping relatively healthy people, who derive less benefit from the coverage pool, to leave the federally funded system, according to the Office of the non-parliamentary budget of the Congress.
Ms. Kuster's bill, which four Republicans have crossed to join the parties, has virtually no chance of being passed in the Senate. The White House budget office has vindicated the granting of waivers by the state this week, saying the changes to the rules had not resulted in the loss of coverage for people with preexisting conditions.
"The president has repeatedly said that this administration will protect people with pre-existing diseases," the office said in a statement. "Individual market coverage has become increasingly unaffordable for unsubsidized consumers, including those with pre-existing conditions. The 2018 guidelines have released states to develop health coverage that best meets the needs of their residents. "
Proponents of the bill say the rule changes are a thinly veiled attempt to weaken health insurance online health insurance by getting younger, healthier patients to retire, making them financially unsustainable.
"People who subscribe to short-term plans often end up not getting the insurance they rely on, even if they seem superficially attractive to the younger ones because the premiums are lower than 'Obamacare', said Stan Dorn, Health Policy Analyst at Families. United States, a liberal health care advocacy group that has strongly supported the health act.
"It is also devastating for the system to remove these young and healthy people, as the premiums increase for everyone else," he added.
Mr. Trump, frustrated in his attempts to repeal the Congressional Health Act, tried to attack it piecemeal, by relaxing the regulations governing insurance plans and by granting exemptions from the rules. States that weaken the complex system of trade and subsidies necessary for its operation.
This month, the administration officially declared its opposition to the Affordable Care Act, alleging in a federal appeal court in Texas that the system – which covers about 23 million low-income, working-class Americans – should be scrapped.
Democrats hope to cast doubt on Trump's promise to "always protect Americans with preexisting conditions" – but they also hope the move will end differences within their own party. On Wednesday, Democratic House Representative Steny H. Hoyer of Maryland played down the divisions between Pelosi and the Liberals who are calling for a vote on the drug law for everyone.
"Both President Pelosi and I have said that the best way for us to do this – and we want to do that – is to ensure that the A.C.A. is working as planned, "he told reporters during his weekly weekly session.
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