Vulnerable House Republicans warn leaders against cutting Obamacare
The group of centrists also said the party needed to be careful about deep cuts to social safety net programs.
House Republicans in competitive districts warned GOP leaders Thursday: We could lose our seats if you gut Obamacare to pay for a massive border, energy and tax bill.
A group of about a dozen centrist Republicans...worry GOP efforts to pare back the Affordable Care Act could pour fuel on the fire.
...Instead, they argued, Republicans needed to embrace the GOP’s role as the working class party. Leaders would counter that message by slashing programs working Americans rely on, they said. GOP lawmakers in the room included Rep. Brian Fitzpatrick (Pa.), Young Kim (Calif.), David Valadao (Calif.), Andrew Garbarino (N.Y.), Tom Barrett (Mich.) and Don Bacon (Neb.).
Health care spending in the US reached $4.9 trillion and increased 7.5 percent in 2023, growing from a rate of 4.6 percent in 2022. In 2023, private health insurance and Medicare spending grew faster than in 2022, while Medicaid spending and enrollment growth slowed as the COVID-19 public health emergency ended. The health sector’s share of the economy in 2023 was 17.6 percent, which was similar to its share of 17.4 percent in 2022 but lower than in 2020 and 2021 during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic.
A flurry of scientific gatherings and panels across federal science agencies were canceled on Wednesday, at a time of heightened sensitivity about how the Trump administration will shift the agencies’ policies and day-to-day affairs.
Several meetings of National Institutes of Health study sections, which review applications for fellowships and grants, were canceled without being rescheduled, according to agency notices reviewed by STAT. A Feb. 20-21 meeting of the National Vaccine Advisory Committee, a panel that advises the leadership of the Department of Health and Human Services on vaccine policy, was also canceled. So was a meeting of the Presidential Advisory Council for Combating Antibiotic-Resistant Bacteria that was scheduled for Jan. 28 and 29.
The scope of the cancellations was unclear. It was also unclear whether they were related to the Trump administration’s freeze on external communications until Feb. 1.
It was in early 2021 that Congressional Democrats passed & President Biden signed the American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA), which among other things dramatically expanded & enhanced the original premium subsidy formula of the Affordable Care Act, finally bringing the financial aid sliding income scale up to the level it should have been in the first place over a decade earlier.
In addition to beefing up the subsidies along the entire 100 - 400% Federal Poverty Level (FPL) income scale, the ARPA also eliminated the much-maligned "Subsidy Cliff" at 400% FPL, wherein a household earning even $1 more than that had all premium subsidies cut off immediately, requiring middle-class families to pay full price for individual market health insurance policies.
Here's what the original ACA premium subsidy formula looked like compared to the current, enhanced subsidy formula:
On his first day in office, Donald Trump issued dozens of Executive Orders. Some of these are mostly symbolic; some won't have any effect without legislative action; some are blatantly unconstitutional & are already being challenged in court. Many, however, are terrifying and will have horrific consequences for thousands or potentially millions of Americans and non-Americans alike.
Along with issuing his own new ones, Trump has also already rescinded over 60 XOs issued by President Biden. In this post I'm going to focus on three of them which pertain specifically to healthcare policy.
Again, all three of the following have now been RESCINDED BY DONALD TRUMP:
US exit from WHO could see fifth of budget disappear
US President Donald Trump has signed an executive order to begin the process of withdrawing the US from the World Health Organization (WHO).
"Oooh, that's a big one," the newly inaugurated US president said as he approved the document after arriving back at the White House. It was one of dozens of executive actions he put his signature to on day one in office.
...Under the Biden administration the US continued to be the largest funder of the WHO and in 2023 it contributed almost one-fifth of the agency's budget.
The organisation's annual budget is $6.8bn (£5.5bn).
It is possible that funding could disappear almost immediately, and it is not clear that other nations will step up to fill the gap.
A US withdrawal could have an impact on WHO's ability to respond to emergencies such as an Ebola outbreak, or MPOX – let alone another Covid-19-style pandemic.
But actually, he thought as he re-adjusted the Ministry of Plenty’s figures, it was not even forgery. It was merely the substitution of one piece of nonsense for another. Most of the material that you were dealing with had no connexion with anything in the real world, not even the kind of connexion that is contained in a direct lie. Statistics were just as much a fantasy in their original version as in their rectified version. A great deal of the time you were expected to make them up out of your head.
For example, the Ministry of Plenty’s forecast had estimated the output of boots for the quarter at 145 million pairs. The actual output was given as sixty-two millions. Winston, however, in rewriting the forecast, marked the figure down to fifty-seven millions, so as to allow for the usual claim that the quota had been overfulfilled. In any case, sixty-two millions was no nearer the truth than fifty-seven millions, or than 145 millions.
Pennie Sees Record-Breaking 2025 Enrollments at Nearly Half a Million; But Without Federal Action, Some Enrollees Will Face Higher Costs Next Year
More people than ever enrolled in health coverage through Pennie, however if critical affordability policies are not extended, premiums will sharply increase for many Pennie enrollees in 2026.
Harrisburg, PA – Pennie, PA’s official health insurance marketplace, concluded its 2025 Open Enrollment Period with a record-breaking enrollment of 496,661. This marks the largest marketplace enrollment ever in Pennsylvania and reflects Pennie’s ongoing success in helping Pennsylvanians access affordable, high-quality health coverage. This means more Pennsylvanians can see their doctor, fill their prescriptions, and be protected against the extraordinary costs of a medical emergency.
Record-setting 167,163 Minnesotans Used MNsure to Sign Up for 2025 Health Plans
ST. PAUL, Minn. — MNsure Chief Executive Officer Libby Caulum today announced that over 167,000 Minnesotans signed up for 2025 health plans using Minnesota’s official health insurance marketplace.
At the close of MNsure’s annual open enrollment period just before midnight on January 15, 167,163 residents had successfully signed up for private health insurance plans – a 14 percent increase over last year, which was also a record-setting open enrollment period. Sign-ups include consumers who are new to MNsure as well as current enrollees who selected a plan for 2025.
Enrollment increased by 16% over last year – seventh annual increase in a row.
BALTIMORE (Jan. 17, 2025) – Nearly a quarter-million Marylanders enrolled for 2025 through Maryland Health Connection – a new record for the state-based health insurance marketplace.
A total of 247,243 enrolled during the open enrollment period that began Nov. 1, 2024 and ended Wednesday. That was up 16% from 213,895 enrollments one year ago. An additional roughly 150 people who were in line with the Maryland Health Connection call center at midnight Wednesday may be in the process of completing their enrollments this week.
This marked the seventh consecutive year of enrollment increases in the health insurance marketplace that Maryland established in 2013 following the passage of the Affordable Care
Act. Total enrollment is up 56% since the pandemic.
