President Donald Trump’s first actions from the Oval Office include rolling back health care policies put forth by former President Joe Biden, including expanding the Affordable Care Act (ACA), also known as “Obamacare.” was included.
Shortly after taking the oath of office on Monday, President Trump moved quickly to rescind a long list of Biden executive orders covering a wide range of issues. Two of the rescinded orders involved Mr. Biden’s efforts to expand access to the ACA and return federal programs to their “pre-Trump state” for the first time.
The move infuriated Democrats, who called it an “attack” on federal health care programs.
“Donald Trump’s immediate priorities as president are to strip affordable health care coverage from tens of millions of Americans and impoverish those with pre-existing conditions,” the Democratic National Committee said in a statement Tuesday. said.
Shortly after taking office in January 2021, Biden passed Executive Order 14009, entitled “Strengthening Medicaid and the Affordable Care Act.” The measure, which President Trump rescinded as part of his first day of executive action, doubled the amount of time uninsured Americans have to apply to participate in federal insurance programs. During President Trump’s first term, the ACA’s open application period was six weeks.
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In addition to expanding the open enrollment period, Biden’s January 2021 executive order directs all relevant federal agencies to review their policies and implement necessary changes to make more people eligible for the ACA. did.
President Trump has denied that he wants to repeal the Affordable Care Act. (Getty Images)
Meanwhile, in April of the following year, Biden signed a second executive order to “continue to strengthen Americans’ access to affordable, quality health care coverage,” which Trump also rescinded on Monday. Biden’s April order directed the Department of Health and Human Services to “determine how to collect medical debt from beneficiaries to find new ways to ease the burden of medical debt on working families and individuals around the world.” It ordered an analysis of a new policy aimed at “investigating whether the country. ”
Consistent with both of these orders, the agencies promoted the expansion of the ACA through new eligibility provisions, increased funding for organizations that assist in enrolling in the ACA, and more.
Other changes President Trump enacted in his first days in office included reversing a Biden-era policy that directed Medicare and Medicaid to investigate ways to lower drug costs. In response to this order, the U.S. Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) placed a $2 cap on certain generic drugs to ensure that Medicare beneficiaries do not overpay for drugs that receive early approval. Helped state Medicaid programs pay for certain high costs. , cutting edge treatment. Mr. Biden’s policies, which set a $35 cap on insulin costs and a $2,000 out-of-pocket cap on prescription drug costs, were not affected by Trump’s day-one order.
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On his first day in office, President Trump also rolled out several of Biden’s COVID-19 health orders, including directives to ensure equity in the pandemic response and COVID-19 vaccination requirements for federal employees. I took action to cancel it. He also withdrew the United States’ participation in the World Health Organization.
The Democratic National Committee claimed on Tuesday that President Trump is “deceiving people with pre-existing conditions.”
“Donald Trump’s immediate priority as president is to strip tens of millions of Americans of affordable health care,” the DNC said in a statement Tuesday. “Thanks to the Biden-Harris Administration, more Americans than ever before have health insurance. Even though Americans overwhelmingly support the ACA, President Trump is trying to roll back this progress.” President Trump’s plan will only increase costs and make Americans sicker.”
But health policy experts at Vanderbilt University say the actions President Trump takes on health policy likely won’t matter in terms of how much Americans pay for health care.
Emergency signs mark the entrance to Scripps Memorial Hospital on March 23, 2017 in La Jolla, California. (Reuters/Mike Blake)
“When there is a change of administration, many administrations try to undo some of the other president’s actions, even if they are more symbolic,” said Stacey Duseczina, a professor at Vanderbilt University’s Office of Health Policy. ,” Dr. Stacey Dusetsyna, a professor at Vanderbilt University’s School of Health Policy, told NBC News. “This could mean that the Trump administration has no interest in pursuing initiatives that have since developed from these executive orders.”
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FOX News Digital reached out to the Trump administration for comment, but did not receive a response by the time of publication.
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