A top official overseeing Obamacare said Wednesday he’s hopeful that congressional Republicans and President-elect Trump won’t immediately deprive millions of Americans of their insurance plans in a quest to ditch President Obama’s healthcare law.
“We are heartened certainly in what we hear from Republicans and Democrats in respecting the fact that no one wants to do something disruptive to consumers,” Andy Slavitt, acting administrator of the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, told reporters.
Yet there’s little Slavitt or other outgoing Obama administration officials can do if Republicans follow through on their promises to repeal the Affordable Care Act, once Trump is in office next year.
That possibility has created troubling uncertainty for insurers who are selling plans in the Obamacare marketplaces, although it’s unlikely Republicans would pass legislation that would immediately kick people off plans they’re currently purchasing for the 2017 plan year.
Slavitt said he and colleagues are doing what they can to reassure consumers that they’ll be able to stay on their Obamacare plans next year and talking to insurers about how they too can address customer concerns.
“We’ve had … dozens of conversations,” Slavitt said. “I think the companies are very much foot-forward, eager to honor the coverage they have. I think they’re very focused on making sure the consumers are not confused.”
“I don’t think we’ve had more real in-depth conversations than that,” Slavitt added.
