GOP’s ‘Repeal And Delay’ Strategy Threatens To Send Already-Teetering Market Into Chaos
“Insurers need to know the rules of the road in order to develop plans and set premiums," says Sabrina Corlette, a professor at the Health Policy Institute of Georgetown University.
The New York Times:
G.O.P. Plans Immediate Repeal Of Health Law, Then A Delay
Republicans in Congress plan to move almost immediately next month to repeal the Affordable Care Act, as President-elect Donald J. Trump promised. But they also are likely to delay the effective date so that they have several years to phase out President Obama’s signature achievement. This emerging “repeal and delay” strategy, which Speaker Paul D. Ryan discussed this week with Vice President-elect Mike Pence, underscores a growing recognition that replacing the health care law will be technically complicated and could be politically explosive. (Pear, Steinhauer and Kaplan, 12/3)
The Associated Press:
Obama: Health Care Act Is Law, US Can't Go Backward
President Barack Obama is urging the public to help save his health care law, which is in serious danger of being repealed under President-elect Donald Trump. In a Facebook Live appearance, Obama says the Affordable Care Act has improved millions of lives over the six years it's been the "law of the land." He says the country can't go "backward." (12/2)
In other national health care news —
The Wall Street Journal:
Crossing State Lines Is No Easy Jaunt For Insurers And Local Regulators
As Republicans gear up to overhaul the federal health law, they face pushback from a couple unexpected corners over one of their goals: Giving health insurers greater ability to sell policies to consumers across state lines. Republicans for some time have billed interstate sales of insurance as a way to heighten competition and lower costs. It is one of the few specific health initiatives displayed on President-elect Donald Trump’s transition website. (Armour and Wilde Mathews, 12/5)
The Fiscal Times:
Pence Dampens Ryan’s Call For Major Medicare Overhaul Next Year
Vice President-elect Mike Pence on Sunday dampened speculation that Republicans would turn their attention to a major overhaul of the Medicare program for seniors next year after repealing the Affordable Care Act. He insisted that President-elect Donald Trump would honor his campaign commitment to leave Medicare and Social Security unscathed. (Pianin, 12/4)
The New York Times:
Tom Price Is Eager To Lead H.H.S., And Reduce Its Clout
During his 12 years in Congress, Representative Tom Price has made clear what role he thinks the government should play in health care. It can be summed up in one word: less. Throughout his career, Mr. Price — who has been picked by President-elect Donald J. Trump to be secretary of health and human services — has argued that the government should get out of the way of doctors and give patients more control over their health care. (Pear, 12/4)
Modern Healthcare:
Wounded Care
The health problems of Native Americans, who represent 2% of the U.S. population, are largely invisible to the broader public. Congress rarely investigates conditions at [Indian Health Services] facilities. The last piece of wide-ranging legislation to tackle its problems—the Indian Health Care Improvement Act—was passed in 1976 and was permanently reauthorized as part of the Affordable Care Act. But it never succeeded in righting the underfunded agency. Frustrated by the failure of the federal government to take their concerns seriously, tribes in other parts of the country over the past several decades have forced out IHS by creating not-for-profit community organizations to run their local facilities. (Hermand and Fei, 12/2)
Stat:
Zika Vaccines Are In Rapid Development, But Is There A Market For Them?
When top US health authorities convened in late January to brief President Barack Obama on the Zika outbreak in Latin America, the post-meeting scuttlebutt was that the president was eager to push development of a Zika vaccine. The officials attending the meeting tried to convey an inconvenient reality: Real-world need and vaccine development speed are rarely in sync. Vaccines take years to produce, test, and license. The Zika virus, which had received scant study before 2016, was unlikely to prove to be an exception to that truth. And yet a mere 10 months later, despite funding delays from a fractious pre-election Congress, three experimental Zika vaccines are already being tested in people; another four or five should start human trials between now and next fall. (Branswell, 12/5)