Trump Delays Healthcare Plan Announcement After ‘Significant Congressional Backlash’
President Donald Trump reportedly scrapped a planned announcement on extending Affordable Care Act subsidies set for Monday, after MS NOW journalist Jake Traylor reported he was facing “significant congressional backlash” from Republican lawmakers.
Traylor’s report, based on two White House officials, said the president was ready to share a plan for halting spiking Obamacare premiums. That plan was delayed, though, after Traylor reported the president’s “plan is facing strong backlash from congressional Republicans.” His story for MS NOW’s website was co-bylined by reporter Mychael Schnell.
Both MS NOW and Politico had previously reported that Trump was ready to share his new plan on Monday. Politico reported on Sunday that the new health policy would include a two-year extension on Obamacare subsidies, which are set to expire at the end of 2025; the plan was also going to put “new limits on eligibility.”
The Monday reveal was not on Trump’s official calendar. White House officials, MS NOW reported, acknowledged “the initial plan,” which aimed to end “surprise premium hikes.”
“Until President Trump makes an announcement himself, any reporting about the Administration’s healthcare positions is mere speculation,” White House spokesman Kush Desai told the outlet.
President Trump has criticized Obamacare a fair amount recently, saying it has been a “disaster” for most Americans.
One Republican in the House of Representatives told MS NOW he was “absolutely not supportive of extending ACA subsidies.”
“I wasn’t expecting the proposal to be Obamacare-lite,” the representative added.
Another GOP congress member said they were aware the Trump Administration had been working on a plan — but not that it included subsidy extensions.
The subsidies were the key issue Democrats were pushing for during the government shutdown. The Dems did not get the extension they were looking for in the deal to reopen the government — something that angered many liberal lawmakers — just a commitment from Senate Republicans that a vote would be held on them by the end of the year.
