ObamaCare Replacement To Offer Health Insurance For All Americans

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President-elect Donald Trump has announced that he is planning to bring in a new health plan to replace Obamacare. He also said that the new plan will provide cover to all Americans and bring down the deductibles or out-of-pocket costs for the patients.

Trump also said that till now, pharmaceutical companies had been politically protected. Now, the government will negotiate with them and force them to lower their prices.

Huffington Post reported that the hints dropped by Trump (on what plan will look like) are ideologically quite different from what Republicans have been rooting for, or what his advisers have been saying. It seems that his announcement is more in reaction to public anxiety and outrage over the possibility that more than 20 million may lose health insurance coverage provided to them.

The exact details of the plan or the precise date on which the plan will be rolled out have not been announced yet. According to the Trump, the plan is receiving the finishing touches and will soon be made public. Trump said that he is also waiting for his nominee for secretary of health and human services Rep. Tom Price to get the confirmation and take office.

The Democratic Party has been advocating health insurance for everyone and bringing down the excessive medical costs since the 1940s. This led to the introduction of an Affordable Care Act which covered the maximum number of Americans till now and improved their access to health care.

Obamacare got mired in the political controversy because of high deductibles. It was said that the law made insurance more expensive, and the financial assistance phased out with higher incomes. Even Obama and Hillary Clinton had proposed to offer more assistance to the Obamacare consumers with their out-of-pocket spending, and use the government's power to bring down the prices of medication, drugs, and treatments.

Bernie Sanders, in his 2016 presidential bid, had advocated that the government should provide health insurance for everyone. Republicans have taken a different approach, though. For the seven years since Obamacare has become the law, Republicans have proposed several alternatives for the health plan - with the most detailed one being from Tom Price. The fundamental goal of all the plans has been to reduce federal spending and regulations.

Republicans have also been against direct negotiations between the government and drug companies over the rising prices. They have argued that such efforts will only stifle innovation and in long-term, affect access to life-saving medications.

The Washington Post is skeptical about the new announcement. Repealing and replacing the GOP at the same time seems like a tough task. The Senate Republicans have expressed their anxiety too. Sen. Lamar Alexander openly said that Republicans should not repeal the ACA until they have a replacement ready for it.

Trump has advocated universal coverage earlier too when he appeared on the CBS's show "60 Minutes". Democrats are happy with the new announcement. On MSNBC's "Morning Joe", Rep. Elijah Cummings (D-Md.) said, "On the prescription drug issue, Bernie Sanders and [Sen.] Elizabeth Warren [D-Mass.] and I have been working on this issue for years and we have not been able to get any traction. When I read yesterday that the president-elect wanted to begin to deal with this issue, I said 'Hallelujah.'"