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Direct payment to buy health insurance? What President Trump said about ObamaCare amid government shutdown
President Donald Trump on Truth Social slammed ObamaCare and recommended that money be sent directly to the people.
President Donald Trump, on Saturday, recommended that money be sent directly to people so they can buy their own health insurance. At the same time, he blasted ObamaCare or the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (ACA).
Taking to Truth Social, Trump stated “I am recommending to Senate Republicans that the Hundreds of Billions of Dollars currently being sent to money sucking Insurance Companies in order to save the bad Healthcare provided by ObamaCare, BE SENT DIRECTLY TO THE PEOPLE SO THAT THEY CAN PURCHASE THEIR OWN, MUCH BETTER, HEALTHCARE, and have money left over.”
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He added that money would be taken from ‘BIG, BAD Insurance Companies’ and given to the people. Further, the president called on Senate Republicans to ‘terminate, per Dollar spent, the worst Healthcare anywhere in the World, ObamaCare.’ The POTUS continued that on an unrelated note they must also ‘terminate the filibuster’.
Notably, Trump's remark comes amid the ongoing government shutdown. Democrats want a funding bill to include healthcare subsidies that are due to expire for 24 million Americans at year's end, but Trump's fellow Republicans say Congress must first pass a funding bill without strings attached and allow the government to reopen before tackling other issues.
Trump's recent idea has already found support from Republican Senators James Lankford of Oklahoma and Lindsey Graham of South Carolina.
Will Americans get direct payment for health insurance?
Despite President Trump's suggestion, a proposal for direct payment to people has to be cleared by the House of Representatives and the Senate in order for it to become federal law. Thus, for now, there will be no direct payments to people for health insurance.
Notably, ACA marketplaces allow people to buy policies directly from health insurers. They mainly serve people who do not have coverage through employers or the Medicare and Medicaid programs of the government.
Trump previously touted direct payments to US taxpayers in other areas as well, including sending money as part of the Covid relief package.
(With Reuters inputs)
