The Obamacare Repeal Reconciliation Act: What Repeal And Delay Would Mean For Coverage, Premiums, And The Budget

Late in the day on July 19, 2017, the Senate released the Obamacare Repeal Reconciliation Act (ORRA) of 2017 (summary). The bill would repeal the Affordable Care Act’s (ACA’s) coverage provisions, but delay the repeal of the coverage provisions until 2020, presumably giving Congress time to come up with a replacement. It is virtually identical to the reconciliation bill that passed both houses of Congress in 2015, only to be vetoed by President Obama. The Congressional Budget Office (CBO) simultaneously released a cost estimate of the bill, which was very similar to the report it had offered on the 2015 bill.  The ORRA would repeal the penalties imposed by the individual and employer mandates retroactive to 2016. It would end the ACA’s premium tax credits, cost-sharing reduction payments, Medicaid expansion to cover adults up to 133 percent of the federal poverty level, and small business tax credits—-that is, all of the assistance that the ACA gives to low- and moderate-income Americans—as of the end of 2020. The bill would remove current caps that limit the amount of premium tax credit overpayments that the IRS can claw back at the time individuals who receive advance tax credits file their taxes. These caps currently provide some protection for low-income individuals who underestimate their income for a year and thus must pay back excess credits. The bill would also repeal the ACA provisions that allowed hospitals to make presumptive Medicaid eligibility provis...
Source: Health Affairs Blog - Category: Health Management Authors: Tags: Following the ACA Insurance and Coverage ACA repeal and replace Source Type: blogs