CounterPunch Exclusives

CounterPunch Exclusives

Trump’s Health Care Affordability Pitch Shifts Costs to Patients

Photograph Source: The White House – Public Domain

It’s no secret that the failure of Congressional Republicans to extend the enhanced premium subsidies for insurance purchased on the Affordable Care Act (ACA) exchanges led to dramatic increases in premium costs for individuals. Health care jumped to the top of the list of affordability concerns of American consumers, ahead of monthly utilities, food and groceries, housing, and gasoline.

The Trump administration’s proposed solution to the health care affordability crisis is to offer an expansion of catastrophic insurance plans on the ACA exchanges. Catastrophic plans are generally available today to consumers under the age of 30 and are meant for people who make little use of health care services. There are also hardship exemptions (like being homeless) that allow individuals to enroll in these plans. About 54,000 of the 24.3 million people (0.2 percent) that got their health insurance on an ACA exchange have a catastrophic plan in 2026.

The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS), led by Trump appointee Mehmet Oz, has proposed broadening hardship exemptions to make more people eligible for these........

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