President Donald Trump issued an executive order Thursday that could substantially lower health insurance premiums for millions.
President Donald Trump issued an executive order Thursday that could substantially lower health insurance premiums for millions.
However, cheaper coverage might come at a high cost in the form of reduced benefits, critics say. And for millions of other consumers, premium costs eventually could spike as a result of the order.
According to a New York Times report, Trump’s order requires three Cabinet agencies to create rules expanding access to health insurance policies that could be sold by trade associations to members. It also requests rules that would allow commercial insurers to offer short-term medical coverage to individuals and families.
According to the Times:
Health policies offered under the new rules are likely to be less expensive than health plans currently available under the Affordable Care Act. But they also would offer fewer benefits and protections than the plans that have been available as part of the 2010 legislation, more commonly known as “Obamacare.”
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Critics say the new polices could leave consumers who purchase such plans in danger of being inadequately covered, as the new policies would be exempt from “benefits requirements, limits on consumers’ yearly and lifetime costs, and (a) ban on charging more to customers who have been sick,” according to the Washington Post. They also note other potential negative effects of Trump’s order. According to the Post:
However things shake out, don’t expect changes anytime soon. According to ABC News:
That’s because the proposal must now go through a process of public notice and comment, which can take a long time.
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