The controversy over the cheap care act of 2010 dominated the presidential post of Barack Obama. Due to the implementation of Obamcare To increase health insurance premium And almost completely collapsed the market. Biden administration replied Flood in system with extended federal subsidyWhich are ready to end in the late 2025.
Republicans will need to increase share of this extra money for old workers with pre-existing terms to stop the premium suddenly to prevent premium. But in turn, they should emphasize reforms to allow healthy Americans to buy better price insurance with their own money.
The Affordable Care Act was incorporated as an enrollis, at the same price to cover health insurers with pre -existing conditions, who signed up before becoming ill. As a resultMore than double the premium, millions of healthy enrollies dropped coverage and many insurers left the market.
Affordable Care Act stopped the personal health insurance market from falling completely Subsidize For low -income enrollis. But in 2025, persons who earn more than $ 62,600 will face full premium without any assistance.
Those membership enrollies felt the full pain of the premium hike of the Affordable Care Act. The law allows insurers to charge the old enroll up to three times that they do the youngest, and therefore the premium can be ignored for near-saffron. This year, the benchmark Washington ignores the premium for a 61 -year -old man in DC, Is $ 15,402 per year,
Instead of fixing the structure of Obamcare, the newly-taken Democratic Congress in 2021 threw money on the problem with the US Rescue Plan Act. By expanding eligibility for subsidy for high -earnings, Act Cost reduced Health insurance for a 61-year-old covers the difference with $ 15,402 to $ 70,000 from $ 70,000-in-law-struggle taxpayers. That law also expanded the generosity of subsidy for low -income people. $ 22,000, who would have contributed $ 756 to the cost of insurance under the original Affordable Care Act, will be paid completely by the federal government.
This approach has been very expensive. In May 2022, Congress’s Budget Office estimated that subsidy for cheap care act Cost $ 67 billion In 2024. Last June, after renewal of increased subsidy of American Rescue Plan Act, revised cost of Congress budget office for 2024 Up to $ 129 billion,
Recently a paragon institute report He found This leap in cost is very high for increasing enrollment among those who received coverage free. Paragon estimated that such an enroll is responsible for almost half of the new enrollment, and that 5 million people may have denied their income to claim free coverage, the cost of additional $ 20 billion to taxpayers.
Insurance companies eagerly welcomed the arrival of the new healthy enroll, who did not consider it worth buying insurance from the individual market until the federal government paid the entire price. Such new people proved quite attractive, as they used less medical care than existing enroll, but generated the same revenue. In 2024, the Blue Cross received twice in the campaign contribution to the campaign contribution as a Republican of Blue Shield, with a little concern for the cost, aroused eagerly about reducing the number of Americans without stopping.
The termination of the American Rescue Plan Act subsidy is now decreasing again, ready to end at the end of 2025. This would be to find a way for a Republican President and the Republican -led Congress to move forward.
Fiscal conservators have very little hunger to pay all extended Obamcare subsidies to renew the subsidy. But neither will they feel comfortable to allow the increased subsidy of the US Rescue Scheme Act to be completely eliminated, as it will increase a premium of $ 10,000 per year on thousands of retiring thousands of medium -income retired.
The Congress should focus on targeted support by eliminating CAP on eligibility for the original subsidy of the Affordable Care Act, which limits the premium on 9.5 percent income to avoid a sudden profit for people with income above $ 62,600. But they should also allow other expansion of subsidy to end.
In turn, Republican should emphasize that Americans are allowed to receive concessional premiums if they buy insurance before getting sick. In 2017, President Trump allowed Americans to do so Short -term insuranceHowever, in 2024, Biden Administration The duration is limited Four months of these schemes. This came after pressure from the large insurers, who claimed that allowing them to be healthy by allowing them to extend such schemes would be prevented by overcharging those who sign up and preventing cross-safety enrollis with existing conditions.
In fact, the ban of these cheap schemes has served to increase the profits of most insurers. Healthy enrolls are able to buy short -term schemes every few months; These are the only ones who later become ill who are deprived of coverage. Regulatory protection for long-term coverage of enroll in non-Obamcare schemes should be strengthened; Not weak.
In addition, with the expansion of the premium cap of the American Rescue Plan Act, the federal subsidy taxpayers directly subsidize most of the enroll. Therefore, it is also unnecessary to ban healthy enroll by obtaining insurance schemes. Long term coverage At a good price for their money.
Chris Pope is a senior companion at the Manhattan Sansthan.
