GOP unveils plan for 'Trump Health Freedom Accounts' to replace Obamacare subsidies with state waivers
FIRST ON FOX: The leader of the House GOP's largest caucus is rolling out a plan to scale back Obamacare while giving Americans the option to open new health savings...
By Fox News · Fox News
FIRST ON FOX: The leader of the House GOP's largest caucus is rolling out a plan to scale back Obamacare while giving Americans the option to open new health savings accounts (HSAs) named after President Donald Trump . Republican Study Committee Chairman August Pfluger, R-Texas, is filing legislation on Monday called "The More Affordable Care Act," he told Fox News Digital. States would be allowed to opt out of major facets of Obamacare, formally called the Affordable Care Act (ACA), provided they had other systems in place for ensuring premiums were not hiked for high-risk patient pools. Those "waiver states" would then be allowed to either run their own healthcare exchange platforms or oversee private company-run platforms, which Republicans argue will allow more choice in the healthcare marketplace in addition to the federal government's options. GOP WRESTLES WITH OBAMACARE FIX AS TRUMP LOOMS OVER SUBSIDY FIGHT Federal dollars that currently go toward lowering the cost of insurance premiums in those states would be rerouted into personal HSAs for eligible enrollees called "Trump Health Freedom Accounts." The bill would also allow Americans to shop across state lines for healthcare plans, with any healthcare program run under a "waiver state" needing to be easily available to people in other "waiver states." Rather than doing away with Obamacare altogether — something many GOP lawmakers have acknowledged may be an impossible task — the bill would seek to increase competition for people where the federal option is the only choice. The legislation's introduction comes as Republican lawmakers are scrambling for a solution to address rising healthcare premium prices, which could see millions of Americans pay significantly more for healthcare starting next year. REPUBLICAN PITCHES HEALTH SAVINGS ACCOUNTS 'ON STEROIDS' THAT AMERICANS COULD USE TO BUY INSURANCE — AND STEAK One of the most high-profile factors in that price cliff is Obamacare subsidies that were enhanced…