[{"innerBlocks":[],"name":"core\/freeform","postId":3883,"blockType":{"name":"core\/freeform","keywords":[],"attributes":{"content":{"type":"string","source":"raw"},"lock":{"type":"object"}},"providesContext":[],"usesContext":[],"selectors":[],"supports":{"className":false,"customClassName":false,"reusable":false},"styles":[],"variations":[],"apiVersion":3,"title":"Classic","description":"Use the classic WordPress editor.","category":"text"},"originalContent":"U.S. health insurers signaled Tuesday that they\u2019re willing to give up a cornerstone provision of Obamacare that requires all Americans to have insurance, replacing it with a different set of incentives less loathed by Republicans who have promised to repeal the law.

Known as the \u201cindividual mandate,\u201d the rule was a major priority for the insurance industry when the Affordable Care Act was legislated, and also became a focal point of opposition for Republicans. In a position paper released Tuesday\u2014the first since President-elect Donald Trump\u2019s victory\u2014health insurers laid out changes they\u2019d be willing to accept.

\u201cReplacing the individual mandate with strong, effective incentives, such as late enrollment penalties and waiting periods, can help expand coverage and lower costs for everyone,\u201d AHIP said.

That also includes openness to Republican ideas such as an expanded role for health-savings accounts and using so-called high-risk pools to cover sick people. In return, insurers are asking Republicans to create strong incentives to buy insurance, and to ensure the government continues to make good on payments it owes insurers under the ACA. The paper was released by America\u2019s Health Insurance Plans, or AHIP, the main lobby for the industry.

\u201cMillions of Americans depend on their current care and coverage,\u201d AHIP said in the document outlining its positions. The group called on lawmakers to \u201censure that people\u2019s coverage\u2014and lives\u2014are not disrupted.\u201d

Now that they\u2019re set to gain control of the White House, Republican lawmakers are working to define their vision for replacing the law after years of attempts to repeal it. Obamacare brought insurance coverage to about 20 million people via an expansion of Medicaid and new insurance markets, and repealing the law without a replacement would leave those individuals without coverage.

Also See:<\/b> GOP eyes lighting strike on Obamacare to kick off Trump Era<\/a>

Trump has said that repealing and then replacing the law will be one of his first priorities. Republicans in Congress, however, have signaled that they\u2019ll need time to write a replacement\u2014potentially via a years-long delay between passing a repeal and implementing it\u2014to craft a replacement. And AHIP on Thursday said insurers will need at least 18 months to create new products and get them approved by state regulators if Republicans change the market. It could take even more time to educate consumers and change state laws, AHIP said.

\u201cIt\u2019s taken six years to get where we are now and to demonstrate the failure of Obamacare, so it\u2019s going to take us a little while to fix it,\u201d said Senator John Cornyn of Texas, a member of the Republican leadership in the chamber.

Republicans may also make substantial changes to Medicaid, by turning the joint state-federal program into one where the U.S. sends \u201cblock grants\u201d to the states, which exert more control. Vice President-elect Mike Pence said on CNN Tuesday that the Trump administration will \u201cdevelop a plan to block-grant Medicaid back to the states\u201d so they can reform the program. Some Medicaid programs are administered in part by private insurers.

AHIP said any such plans should ensure that payments are adequate to meet the health needs of individuals in Medicaid coverage. And they should ensure that when enrollment increases in an economic downturn, funds are available to help states deal with the increased demand, AHIP said.

AHIP is open to working with Congress on replacement plans for the ACA, said Kristine Grow, a spokeswoman for the lobby group. The document is the first detailed look at AHIP\u2019s priorities.

Big insurers like UnitedHealth Group and Aetna are already scaling back from the ACA\u2019s markets, because they\u2019re losing money. At the same time, remaining insurers are boosting premiums by more than 20 percent on average for next year.

Trump\u2019s election increased the level of uncertainty in the market, and a repeal bill without something to replace the law could destabilize it further. To shore up insurance markets, AHIP says lawmakers should fund a program, known as reinsurance, designed to help insurers with high costs, through the end of 2018, and avoid cutting off cost-sharing subsidies for low-income individuals.
","saveContent":"U.S. health insurers signaled Tuesday that they\u2019re willing to give up a cornerstone provision of Obamacare that requires all Americans to have insurance, replacing it with a different set of incentives less loathed by Republicans who have promised to repeal the law.

Known as the \u201cindividual mandate,\u201d the rule was a major priority for the insurance industry when the Affordable Care Act was legislated, and also became a focal point of opposition for Republicans. In a position paper released Tuesday\u2014the first since President-elect Donald Trump\u2019s victory\u2014health insurers laid out changes they\u2019d be willing to accept.

\u201cReplacing the individual mandate with strong, effective incentives, such as late enrollment penalties and waiting periods, can help expand coverage and lower costs for everyone,\u201d AHIP said.

That also includes openness to Republican ideas such as an expanded role for health-savings accounts and using so-called high-risk pools to cover sick people. In return, insurers are asking Republicans to create strong incentives to buy insurance, and to ensure the government continues to make good on payments it owes insurers under the ACA. The paper was released by America\u2019s Health Insurance Plans, or AHIP, the main lobby for the industry.

\u201cMillions of Americans depend on their current care and coverage,\u201d AHIP said in the document outlining its positions. The group called on lawmakers to \u201censure that people\u2019s coverage\u2014and lives\u2014are not disrupted.\u201d

Now that they\u2019re set to gain control of the White House, Republican lawmakers are working to define their vision for replacing the law after years of attempts to repeal it. Obamacare brought insurance coverage to about 20 million people via an expansion of Medicaid and new insurance markets, and repealing the law without a replacement would leave those individuals without coverage.

Also See:<\/b> GOP eyes lighting strike on Obamacare to kick off Trump Era<\/a>

Trump has said that repealing and then replacing the law will be one of his first priorities. Republicans in Congress, however, have signaled that they\u2019ll need time to write a replacement\u2014potentially via a years-long delay between passing a repeal and implementing it\u2014to craft a replacement. And AHIP on Thursday said insurers will need at least 18 months to create new products and get them approved by state regulators if Republicans change the market. It could take even more time to educate consumers and change state laws, AHIP said.

\u201cIt\u2019s taken six years to get where we are now and to demonstrate the failure of Obamacare, so it\u2019s going to take us a little while to fix it,\u201d said Senator John Cornyn of Texas, a member of the Republican leadership in the chamber.

Republicans may also make substantial changes to Medicaid, by turning the joint state-federal program into one where the U.S. sends \u201cblock grants\u201d to the states, which exert more control. Vice President-elect Mike Pence said on CNN Tuesday that the Trump administration will \u201cdevelop a plan to block-grant Medicaid back to the states\u201d so they can reform the program. Some Medicaid programs are administered in part by private insurers.

AHIP said any such plans should ensure that payments are adequate to meet the health needs of individuals in Medicaid coverage. And they should ensure that when enrollment increases in an economic downturn, funds are available to help states deal with the increased demand, AHIP said.

AHIP is open to working with Congress on replacement plans for the ACA, said Kristine Grow, a spokeswoman for the lobby group. The document is the first detailed look at AHIP\u2019s priorities.

Big insurers like UnitedHealth Group and Aetna are already scaling back from the ACA\u2019s markets, because they\u2019re losing money. At the same time, remaining insurers are boosting premiums by more than 20 percent on average for next year.

Trump\u2019s election increased the level of uncertainty in the market, and a repeal bill without something to replace the law could destabilize it further. To shore up insurance markets, AHIP says lawmakers should fund a program, known as reinsurance, designed to help insurers with high costs, through the end of 2018, and avoid cutting off cost-sharing subsidies for low-income individuals.
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Insurers now say they will give up key Obamacare provision

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