Sen. Lamar Alexander, R-Tenn., who played a major role pushing a bipartisan effort aimed at lowering Obamacare premiums, has formally closed the door on negotiations with Democrats on the issue.
Alexander wrote in a letter to supporters on Tuesday that he is instead working with the Trump administration on actions it can take to shore up Obamacare’s marketplaces, and regrets the effort’s collapse and that Democrats aren’t willing “even to make modest temporary changes.”
Alexander also praised proposed regulations by the administration to expand access to cheaper health plans that opponents say will cause premiums to skyrocket for customers on the exchanges, and will offer those who avail themselves of them inadequate coverage.
Alexander worked with Sen. Patty Murray, D-Wash., to write a bipartisan package to shore up the law’s marketplaces that sell insurance plans on the individual market, which is used by people who don’t get insurance through a job or the government.
But the effort collapsed in March due to a disagreement on whether to apply a restriction that new funding in the package cannot pay for plans that cover abortions.
So far states like Maryland and Virginia have proposed double-digit rates for 2019, citing moves by the Trump administration as a primary driver. Democrats have begun seizing on these results and have blamed congressional Republicans and President Trump, and have said Republicans are responsible for the failed effort on a bipartisan bill.
Brad Woodhouse, director of the pro-Obamacare group Protect Our Care, said the Alexander letter contained “dishonest excuses” that would “only add to Americans’ frustration with the governing party’s track record of higher costs, more people uninsured, and fewer protections for Americans with pre-existing conditions.”
The Trump administration has ended payments to insurers known as cost-sharing reduction subsidies, and Republicans passed a tax bill that repealed Obamacare’s fine for going uninsured, known as the individual mandate, moves that are projected to increase unsubsidized premiums by double digits.
At the administrative level, various agencies are working to expand access to short-term duration plans from 90 days to nearly 12 months and expand access to association health plans purchased by individuals or small employers who band together to get insurance.
Both plans would be cheaper than plans offered on the marketplaces because they do not have to meet Obamacare’s rules intended to protect consumers. These include requirements to cover essential health benefits such as hospitalization and maternity care and a prohibition from charging sick people higher premiums.
