Medicare Blog

how will republican health care act affect medicare

by Ms. Greta Morar Published 2 years ago Updated 1 year ago
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What would have happened if House Republicans repealed Obamacare?

House Republicans would have repealed the Medicaid expansion and the individual market subsidies and would have repackaged them into a program that took some, but not all, of that money and sent it to the states. Each state legislature would have then taken that money and crafted a health insurance plan of their own making.

What happened to the 2017 House Republican plan for health care?

The 2017 House Republican plan's combination of dumping more people into the pool by shrinking Medicaid––and therefore increasing the number of people eligible for individual coverage––and cutting the subsidies in the private market, could only have had the result of making the percentage of eligible people buying a private health plan even worse.

Would the Republican health care plan have cost less than Obamacare?

Each state legislature would have then taken that money and crafted a health insurance plan of their own making. T he Congressional Budget Office's (CBO's) July 2017 evaluation calculated the Republican House plan would have spent $1.3 trillion less than Obamacare over ten years on the Medicaid expansion and on insurance subsidies.

What is the difference between the Republican and democratic parties’ healthcare approaches?

A brief comparison of the Republican and Democratic parties’ approaches to healthcare demonstrates how untrue that is. The Democratic party’s mandate is to make healthcare affordable and as universally accessible as possible, with Medicare, Medicaid, and the Affordable Care Act as proof of their commitment.

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Does the affordable care Act impact Medicare?

Medicare Premiums and Prescription Drug Costs The ACA closed the Medicare Part D coverage gap, or “doughnut hole,” helping to reduce prescription drug spending. It also increased Part B and D premiums for higher-income beneficiaries. The Bipartisan Budget Act (BBA) of 2018 modified both of these policies.

How will ACA repeal affect Medicare?

Dismantling the ACA could thus eliminate those savings and increase Medicare spending by approximately $350 billion over the ten years of 2016- 2025. This would accelerate the insolvency of the Medicare Trust Fund.

How does Obamacare work with Medicare?

The Marketplace won't affect your Medicare choices or benefits. No matter how you get Medicare, whether through Original Medicare or a Medicare Advantage Plan (like an HMO or PPO), you won't have to make any changes. IMPORTANTThe Marketplace doesn't offer Medicare supplement (Medigap) insurance or Part D drug plans.

What is the likely financial impact of the Affordable Care Act on Medicare hospital payments?

The ACA reduced the annual increases in payments to hospitals under the traditional Medicare program. It also reduced payments to Medicare Advantage plans. Partly because of these measures, increases in Medicare expenditures have been 20 percent lower than projected since the law was enacted.

How does the Affordable Care Act affect the elderly?

"The ACA expanded access to affordable coverage for adults under 65, increasing coverage for all age groups, races and ethnicities, education levels, and incomes."Under the ACA, older adults' uninsured rate has dropped by a third, indicators of their health and wellness have improved, and they're now protected from ...

What would happen if Medicare ended?

Payroll taxes would fall 10 percent, wages would go up 11 percent and output per capita would jump 14.5 percent. Capital per capita would soar nearly 38 percent as consumers accumulated more assets, an almost ninefold increase compared to eliminating Medicare alone.

Do you lose Obamacare when you turn 65?

Yes, in general, people age 65 or older who are not entitled to premium-free Medicare can purchase health insurance coverage in the Marketplace (except undocumented immigrants).

Is Medicare more expensive than Obamacare?

The average Medicare Part D plan premium in 2021 is $47.59 per month. The average Medicare Supplement Insurance plan premium in 2019 was $125.93 per month. The average Obamacare benchmark premium in 2021 is $452 per month.

Is Obamacare good for seniors?

Under the new law, seniors can receive recommended preventive services such as flu shots, diabetes screenings, as well as a new Annual Wellness Visit, free of charge. So far, more than 32.5 million seniors have already received one or more free preventive services, including the new Annual Wellness Visit.

What would happen if the Affordable Care Act is repealed 2020?

The health insurance industry would be upended by the elimination of A.C.A. requirements. Insurers in many markets could again deny coverage or charge higher premiums to people with pre-existing medical conditions, and they could charge women higher rates.

Who benefited from the Affordable Care Act?

More than 20 million Americans gained health insurance under the ACA. Black Americans, children and small-business owners have especially benefited. Thirty-seven states have expanded Medicaid, deepening their pool of eligible residents to those who live at or below 138% of the federal poverty level.

What are the benefits of repealing the Affordable Care Act?

Many hospitals, family doctors, and other medical providers are already struggling financially because of COVID-19. Without the ACA, the financial pressures would increase, and many more rural and safety net hospitals that serve low- and middle-income families could be forced to close.

How many Americans support repeal of Obamacare?

Supporters of Obamacare also note that a recent survey by the Kaiser Family Foundation found that only a quarter of Americans support total repeal. Medicare, of course, is overwhelmingly popular with the 57 million seniors and disabled Americans who depend on it.

Who is the speaker of the House who wants to repeal Obamacare?

David Certner, a legislative expert with AARP, said the lack of specifics in Republican calls to repeal Obamacare were of great concern, as are proposals by House Speaker Paul Ryan to provide Medicare enrollees with premium-support payments, or vouchers, and let them buy health insurance in the private market.

How many votes are needed to repeal the individual mandate?

For example, while 60 votes would be required in the Senate to repeal the individual mandate, the financial penalties for not getting insurance might be removed via a reconciliation measure. Without penalties, the mandate would lack enforcement power and could be effectively killed without formal changes to the law.

What would happen if people didn't get health insurance?

If people were not required to get health insurance and insurance companies could not reject someone for coverage on health grounds, then only healthy people would get insurance and insurance companies could not make money insuring sicker persons unless they charged them unaffordably high premiums.

When is Medicare Advantage disenrollment period?

For those who’ve signed up for a Medicare Advantage plan, there also is a Medicare Advantage disenrollment period that runs from Jan. 1 to Feb. 14. You have the option then of moving into basic Medicare (Parts A and B) and also getting a stand-alone Part D prescription drug plan.

Will the Affordable Care Act be repealed?

It now looks like Republicans want to approve repealing the ACA early next year. Replacing it, however, could take years, assuming this is even possible.

Who wrote the book Get What's Yours for Medicare?

How plans to repeal the Affordable Care Act could affect Medicare. Editor’s Note: Journalist Philip Moeller, who writes widely on aging and retirement, is here to provide the answers you need in “Ask Phil.” Phil is the author of the new book, “Get What’s Yours for Medicare,” and co-author of “Get What’s Yours: The Revised Secrets ...

Repealing the ACA

Because of the filibuster rule, a full repeal of the ACA is unlikely without at least eight Democrats voting with the expected 52 Republican senators. However, major portions of the ACA can be rendered meaningless through a process called budget reconciliation.

Republican Proposals to Replace the ACA

To understand the details of what the expected Republican health care reform law would look like, we focused on five specific plans.

What Trumpcare Would Look Like

In our estimation, Trumpcare will contain the following major policy provisions:

Risks and Opportunities for Insurers Under Trumpcare

How will all of the changes associated with the expected Republican health care reform plan will impact health insurers? The rollout of the ACA provided insurers with many challenges, and we expect the same for Trumpcare.

3. People with pre-existing conditions cannot be refused insurance

The AHCA would’ve allowed insurance companies to deny coverage to people with a pre-existing condition following a lapse in coverage. This clause is not expected to be included in the Senate version of the bill.

4. States do not have to cover essential health benefits

One key attribute of Obamacare was that insurance companies must cover “essential health benefits,” which includes things like maternity and newborn care, mental health care and substance abuse treatment, among others. The AHCA would allow each state to obtain waivers for covering those benefits. The Senate bill may contain similar provisions.

5. The fourth of July is the target date for a vote

Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R - KY) stated that he hopes to hold the vote before July 4, which is when Congress goes on its summer recess.

What is the Strengthened Medicare Advantage?

Strengthened Medicare Advantage:Congress passed a chronic care package to allow Medicare beneficiaries with multiple chronic conditions to access telehealth and receive more supplemental benefits. The bill provides additional flexibility for Medicare Advantage plans, allowing them to better tailor benefits to the specific needs of their consumers.

Why was the Older Americans Act reauthorized?

Reauthorized the Older Americans Act: The Older Americans Act was reauthorizedby the Senate to provide home and community-based programs the resources they need to provide nutritional services, caregiver support, senior centers, and transportation services for our nation’s seniors . This legislation helps seniors remain in their homes and communities longer, keeping them healthy and safe, and delaying their need for expensive institutional care.

What was the IPAB in Obamacare?

Repealed Obamacare’s Independent Payment Advisory Board: IPAB was supposed to recommend ways to cut costs in Medicare without harming the care of seniors who rely on the program. However, IPAB would have taken health care options from Medicare enrollees and their doctors and given it to 15 appointed bureaucrats.

What does the drug rebate law do?

The law helps the Department of Health and Human Services better monitor manufacturers participating in the drug rebate program and impose civil penalties on manufacturers who misclassify their drugs. This will help lower the cost of drugs for patients and save taxpayer dollars.

Why is the Creates Act important?

Bringing Generic Drugs to Market Faster: Congress passedthe CREATES Act in 2019 to help consumers get access to more-affordable generic alternatives. The law established a process that lets biosimilar or generic drug developers obtain samples from brand-name drug companies so they can develop and seek FDA approval of generics more quickly. This will help make more low-cost generic drugs available for patients.

What is the SUPPORT Act?

Addressing the Opioid Epidemic: Congress passed, and President Trump signed into law, the SUPPORT Act to help respond to the opioid crisis. The law includes provisions to ensure the health care workforce is better trained in addiction medicine so that these types of medications are appropriately delivered.

Did Republicans repeal Obamacare?

Republicans have repealed Obamacare taxes that hiked costs and stifled medical innovation, and they have helped get affordable generic drugs to the market faster.

What is the repeal of Obamacare?

Any honest agenda for improving healthcare must start with repeal of the dishonestly named Affordable Care Act of 2010: Obamacare. It weighs like the dead hand of the past upon American medicine. It imposed a Euro-style bureaucracy to manage its unworkable, budget-busting, conflicting provisions. It has driven up prices for all consumers. Their insurance premiums have dramatically increased while their deductibles have risen about eight times faster than wages in the last ten years.

How many Americans depend on medicaid?

More than 100 million Americans depend on Medicare or Medicaid for their healthcare; with our population aging, that number will increase. To preserve Medicare and Medicaid, the financing of these important programs must be brought under control before they consume most of the federal budget, including national defense. We intend to save Medicare by modernizing it, empowering its participants, and putting it on a secure financial footing. We will preserve the promise of Medicaid as well by making that program, designed for 1965 medicine, a vehicle for good health in an entirely new era.

What did the Democratic platform promise in 2008?

Take health care. The Democratic platform of 2008 promised us a market of private health plans with government subsidies. That, in essence, is what we got as a major feature of the Affordable care Act. The Democrats rejected single payer and instead delivered on their comparatively feeble platform promises.

How do Democrats keep costs down?

We will keep costs down by making premiums more affordable, reducing out-of-pocket expenses, and capping prescription drug costs. Democrats will also work to end surprise billing and other practices associated with out-of-control medical debt that lead to unconscionable economic strain on American households. We will offer relief so Americans do not face high costs, and we will fight back against insurers trying to impose excessive premium increases.

What is Physicians for a National Health Program?

Physicians for a National Health Program is a nonpartisan educational organization. It neither supports nor opposes any political party or candidate for public office. Primary Sidebar. About PNHP. Mission Statement. Board and Staff. Speakers Bureau. Local Chapters. Students for a National Health Program.

Is Medicaid a welfare reform?

As the dominant force in the health market with regard to long-term care, births, and persons with mental illness, it is the next frontier of welfare reform. It is simply too big and too flawed to be administered from Washington. Most of the vaunted expansion of health insurance coverage under Obamacare actually has been an unprecedented expansion of the Medicaid rolls in many states. We applaud the Republican governors and state legislators who have undertaken the hard work of modernizing Medicaid. We will give them a free hand to do so by block-granting the program without strings. Their initiatives — whether premium supports for purchasing insurance, refundable tax credits, alternatives to hospitalization for chronic patients, disease prevention activities, and other innovations — are the best strategy for preserving Medicaid for those who need it the most.

Is health care a right or a privilege?

We believe as Democrats that health care is a right, not a privilege, and our health care system should put people before profits. Thanks to the hard work of President Obama and Democrats in Congress we took a critically important step towards the goal of universal health care by passing the Affordable Care Act (ACA), which has offered coverage to 20 million more Americans and ensured millions more will never be denied coverage on account of a pre-existing condition.

Why did Republicans move the design and administration of health insurance reform to the states?

Republicans saw moving the design and administration of health insurance reform to the states as an opportunity to administer the program at a more efficient and place that would also have given the states the ability to innovate. Critics only saw the potential for states to go backward on Obamacare's key market reforms, including pre-existing coverage guarantees and financial support.

What would the House Republicans have done to repeal the Medicaid expansion?

House Republicans would have repealed the Medicaid expansion and the individual market subsidies and would have repackaged them into a program that took some, but not all, of that money and sent it to the states. Each state legislature would have then taken that money and crafted a health insurance plan of their own making.

Why would protections pertaining to guaranteed issue and the prohibition on coverage exclusions be retailored under the answer?

Protections pertaining to guaranteed issue and the prohibition on coverage exclusions would be retailored under the RSC plan to reward continuous coverage and promote portability in the individual marketplace.

How many people will leave medicaid in 2020?

Nine million people leaving Medicaid by 2020 growing to 14 million in 2026––and then having to enter the individual market as their only option for coverage unless they found their way to employer coverage. The individual market shrinking by ten million in 2020 and six million by 2026. The CBO therefore concluded that the number ...

How many states are involved in the RSC plan?

The RSC plan also assumes that taking this very controversial and complex health insurance reform challenge and simply delegating it to fifty state legislatures, who will then be expected to come up with fifty different decisions on how to proceed that they argue will all be better, is a risk voters will want to take.

What did the Republican plan do in 2017?

The 2017 House Republican plan's combination of dumping more people into the pool by shrinking Medicaid– –and therefore increasing the number of people eligible for individual coverage––and cutting the subsidies in the private market , could only have had the result of making the percentage of eligible people buying a private health plan even worse.

Do Republicans have a health care plan?

The Republicans don't yet have a health care plan less than a year before the 2020 elections.

Where do Democrats and Republicans stand on the issue of healthcare?

The chasm between the parties’ approach to providing healthcare to Americans couldn’t be more vast. Simply put, Democrats have had some form of healthcare reform on their agenda for nearly a century. Republicans not so much. They feel that the status quo is just fine. At the core is a philosophical disagreement about the role of government. Democrats believe that government should be responsible for the people in some ways, and Republicans believe that the less government, the better. In the current climate, this boils down to Democrats wanting to retain, improve, and expand the ACA, and Republicans working overtime to repeal it with no replacement.

Which party supports Medicare for All?

Only the most progressive wing of the Democratic party supports Medicare for All. Most feel that it’s not fiscally feasible, would be deleterious because of its impact on the healthcare industry, and would take away choice for Americans.

What are the major reforms the Democrats fought for?

Medicare, Medicaid, Children’s Health Insurance Program (CHIP), and the ACA are all major reforms the Democrats fought for and got passed into law.

What do Democrats believe about the ACA?

Democrats believe that government should be responsible for the people in some ways, and Republicans believe that the less government, the better. In the current climate, this boils down to Democrats wanting to retain, improve, and expand the ACA, and Republicans working overtime to repeal it with no replacement.

What is Medicaid expansion?

Medicaid expansion is a centerpiece of the ACA. It gives states the option to broaden access to Medicaid benefits by loosening eligibility requirements. States that adopt it can provide care to those who normally fall between cracks. Democrats would like to see it become more widespread.

Is the ACA a bad thing?

For Republicans, the ACA is the worst thing to come down the pike in ages. They fought long and hard first to stop it from becoming law, and second to repeal it altogether. The Trump Administration is currently trying to validate the law via court ruling. They see it as socialized medicine, a violation of patients’ rights, bad for the healthcare industry across the board, and bad for the country. They are particularly vexed at the subsidies and expanded Medicaid access, and worked to eliminate the Individual Mandate.

Which party is the opposite of the Democrats?

Republicans take pretty much the opposite view of Democrats. Traditionally dedicated to the notion that less government is better government, and the free market makes adjustments on its own without regulation, the party has fought every reform the Democrats have enacted.

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