White House tells court it is immediately stopping ACA cost-sharing subsidies
Source: The Washington Post
By Amy Goldstein and Juliet Eilperin October 13 at 2:23 PM
The Trump administration informed a federal appeals court on Friday that the government would immediately halt payments to insurers that help millions of lower-income Americans afford coverage under the Affordable Care Act, formalizing a decision that could upend individual insurance markets across the country.
In the filing to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit, officials wrote that the Health and Human Services Department has stopped whats known as cost-sharing reduction payments, which help offset deductibles and other out-of-pocket costs for roughly 7 million Americans. The payments were stopped, the filing said, because they were not formally appropriated by Congress.
The documents include an Oct. 11 legal opinion from Attorney General Jeff Sessions, informing HHS and the Treasury Department that he believes the best interpretation of the law indicates that money appropriated to HHS cannot be used to fund the subsidies.
Trump decided on Wednesday to cut off the payments which were expected to total about $7 billion this year even though several advisers had told him that doing so could have drastic consequences. Officials will not make an upcoming payment to insurers scheduled for Oct. 18, the court filing states.
Read more: https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/white-house-tells-court-it-is-immediately-stopping-aca-cost-sharing-subsidies/2017/10/13/4c404234-b01d-11e7-be94-fabb0f1e9ffb_story.html
Response to DonViejo (Original post)
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Freethinker65
(10,021 posts)There will be little left if Trump succeeds
juxtaposed
(2,778 posts)NanceGreggs
(27,814 posts)... that he would repeal Obamacare, and replace it with a lower-cost plan that would cover everyone.
What they got is the loss of the only affordable healthcare coverage they had - full stop; no replacement, no lowered costs - just nothing.
And yet, many of them will go on supporting him ...
MiniMe
(21,716 posts)Who knew health care could be so hard?? Asshat
NanceGreggs
(27,814 posts)And the Trumpholes will stubbornly insist that NO healthcare coverage is actually better for everyone.
Dustlawyer
(10,495 posts)site and hung on WH fence, and the Capitol steps, calling out the murderers in the Republican Congress and the WH! They need tombe paraded past Rockefeller center during the morning shows...
Beyond the pale!
BigmanPigman
(51,593 posts)I am going to record my death and my family will post it everywhere they can. I wish it could be played at halftime at the Superb owl. I want everyone to actually see me die die to the fake prez and evil GOP. My blood will be on their hands.
cstanleytech
(26,291 posts)that Congress approved so how exactly can Donald now step in and stop the subsidies?
BumRushDaShow
(129,000 posts)When Obama was still in office, the GOP sued and claimed the payments were not explicitly authorized in annual appropriations and the lower court agreed. The Obama admin appealed that ruling to the Circuit Court but when the administrations changed, the appeal had not been decided yet and the Drumpf admin was not expected to continue on with the appeal in order to begin to dismantle the ACA.
So with that in mind, a number of states sued and the courts agreed that those states had standing to intervene, and they were given the right to carry on with the Obama admin appeal. So what will need to happen now is that the states will probably file for some sort of stay prohibiting the Drumpf admin from ceasing the payments pending resolution of the appeal.
Some info here - https://www.washingtonpost.com/national/health-science/court-ruling-could-help-keep-obamacare-subsidies/2017/08/01/85b3ab66-7727-11e7-9eac-d56bd5568db8_story.html
Red Mountain
(1,733 posts)Not much choice but to jack up the rates.
Am I wrong?
BumRushDaShow
(129,000 posts)They are gonna GET THEIRS, whether the government gives it to them or the patient.
The downside for them however is that they would lose customers that might have stayed if they had the subsidies.