Alexander, Murray announce deal on health subsidies
Democratic and Republican leaders in the Senate announced a bipartisan deal to shore up the Affordable Care Act health insurance markets for two years while Congress grapples with GOP efforts to replace the law.
Sens. Lamar Alexander, R-Tenn., and Patty Murray, D-Wash., leaders of the Senate health committee, said Tuesday that they struck a deal for a two-year extension of subsidies for insurance companies to cover low-income clients — subsidies President Trump canceled last week.
Alexander said the deal would expand authority for states to experiment with alternative standards for insurance plans that deviate from federal requirements, but it would not do away with the requirement to cover people with pre-existing conditions.
The deal would not eliminate so-called essential health benefits — such as mental health and maternity care — insurance plans must cover.
Republican efforts to repeal Obamacare ran aground in part because of concerns of both Democrats and Republicans that these provisions would be eliminated.
The agreement would involve a two-year extension of federal payments to insurers that Trump halted last week.
Unless the money is quickly restored, insurers warned, premiums will go higher for people buying individual policies, and some carriers will leave unprofitable markets.
“Over the next two years, I think, Americans won’t have to worry about the price of health (insurance) and being able to buy insurance in the counties where they live,” Alexander said. “This will allow the Senate to continue its debate about the long term of health care.”
Alexander and Murray worked for weeks on health care legislation, separate from repeated and unsuccessful efforts by GOP leaders to dismantle President Obama’s Affordable Care Act.
Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., said he does not have a timetable for bringing the bill to a vote on the Senate floor.
At the White House, Trump spoke favorably about the senators’ effort. “It is a short-term solution, so we don’t have this very dangerous little period,” he said.
Murray and Alexander began talks on extending the payments months ago, when Trump frequently threatened to stop the subsidies.
Both said they were close to a deal, but GOP leaders shut down the effort in September when the Senate revisited the Republican drive to repeal Obama’s law. The repeal effort failed, as did an attempt to dismantle the law in July.
Alexander said Trump has spoken to him twice in recent days to urge him to reach a deal with Murray. “He says he doesn’t want people to be hurt in this interim,” Alexander said.
Murray said the deal is necessary because “the uncertainty and dysfunction can’t continue.”
Though details were still being worked out, she said, “Chairman Alexander and I were able to find common ground on a number of steps to stabilize markets and help protect families from premium spikes.” Senate Minority Leader Charles Schumer said, “Two years of costsharing provides real stability to the system, and we want to make sure that happens. ... I think there’s a growing consensus that in the short term, we need stability in the markets.”
The New York Democrat said Trump’s move to eliminate Obamacare subsidies helped because Republicans suddenly faced the consequences of millions not being able to afford health care and they didn’t want “the consequences of this on (their) doorstep, and it pushed it closer to a deal with us.”
Trump repeated his gloomy assessment of a law that has expanded health coverage to 20 million people and required insurers to cover specified services and limit costs but has also seen premiums rise and limited competition in some regions.
“Obamacare is virtually dead. At best, you could say it’s on its final legs. ... Obamacare is a disgrace to our nation, and we are solving the problem of Obamacare,” he said.
President Trump canceled them last week
“It is a short-term solution, so we don’t have this very dangerous little period.” President Trump