White House Press Release - Secretary of Health and Human Services Alex Azar: "Obamacare Forgot About You. But Trump Didn't."

"Obamacare remains broken at its core, but this administration isn't shutting out the law's forgotten Americans. Instead, we're finally giving them affordable choices."

Obamacare forgot about you. But Trump didn't.

By Secretary Alex Azar

The Washington Post

August 15, 2018

For all the discussion of Obamacare since its passage, it is too rarely known that the law effectively split the United States' individual insurance market in two.

One group of Americans — about 8 million enrollees in 2017 — now pay, on average, less than a quarter of the cost of their health insurance, receiving ever-growing taxpayer subsidies to insulate them from Obamacare's high premiums. But there is a second group of Americans who have faced the full premium increases driven by the law's broken regulations. Roughly 5 million Americans, as of 2017, have chosen to pay those premiums without any subsidies, while 28 million other Americans remain uninsured, many priced out of coverage entirely.

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In other words, Obamacare has forced unsubsidized Americans to choose between unaffordable insurance and no insurance at all.

This is unacceptable. It is one reason the Trump administration recently expanded an affordable insurance option the previous administration had all but discarded, providing new choices for these forgotten men and women.

Americans will once again be able to buy what is known as short-term, limited-duration insurance for up to a year, assuming their state allows it. These plans are free from most Obamacare regulations, allowing them to cost between 50 and 80 percent less.

Insurers will also be able to sell renewable plans, allowing consumers to stay on their affordable coverage for up to 36 months. Consumers can also buy separate renewability protection, which will allow them to lock in low rates in their renewable plans even if they get sick.

Unsurprisingly, experts believe there will be healthy demand for these affordable options. Up to 2 million Americans, and possibly more, are expected to enroll within the next few years.

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[T]hese short-term plans can be a good option for many Americans priced out of Obamacare's regulations — especially small-business owners, independent contractors in today's "gig economy" and younger Americans transitioning between school and employment.

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Fundamentally, this administration believes in more options, not fewer, for consumers. Expanding short-term insurance is just part of President Trump's larger agenda to improve health-care choice and competition for Americans.

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Starting about two months from now, thanks to this president, insurers and states will have more freedom to offer consumers more options. Obamacare remains broken at its core, but this administration isn't shutting out the law's forgotten Americans. Instead, we're finally giving them affordable choices.

Read the full op-ed here.