Leading House Democrats are asking the Trump administration to explain how it will carry out the president’s executive order to pull back on the Affordable Care Act.
The order, which President Trump issued just hours after his inauguration, directs federal agencies to continue following the law, but carry it out as loosely as possible to minimize its impact. It’s not clear how the agencies are following the directive.
In a letter sent Wednesday to the Department of Health and Human Services, Treasury and the Department of Labor, the Democrats wrote that they’re worried the executive order could lead to a destabilization of the law’s insurance marketplaces and “sabotage” the coverage gains.
They asked the agencies for analysis of which changes to Obamacare would be legal, a list of provisions that might be subject to the order and details on how the order might affect various provisions of the law.
“Changes to those rules could result in issuers pulling out of the marketplace, leaving Americans with no choices nine months from now when the next open enrollment begins,” the members wrote.
The letter was signed by the top Democrats on four House committees: Richard Neal on Ways and Means; Frank Pallone on Energy and Commerce; John Yarmuth on Budget; and Bobby Scott on Education and the Workforce.
