Biden To Highlight Trump’s Renewed Effort To Shelve Affordable Care Act
As the nation is focused on upcoming elections, the Trump administration is quietly attempting to put an end to the Affordable Care Act (ACA). Former Vice President Joe Biden will be highlighting the renewed effort to shelve the ACA Thursday night during a prime-time speech.
The healthcare law, popularly known as Obamacare, was signed into law in 2010 by President Barack Obama after years of legislative wrangling. It extended health insurance to millions of uninsured Americans by providing subsidies for people who purchased insurance on the program’s health insurance exchanges. It also requires those without insurance to either buy coverage on the exchanges or face a financial penalty.
The Trump administration has been trying to repeal the ACA since he took office in 2017. Most recently, the administration has been focusing its efforts on convincing the Supreme Court to strike down the law on the grounds that the individual mandate, which requires individuals to carry health insurance or pay a penalty, is now unconstitutional. The individual mandate has been central to the law since its enactment.
The Trump administration’s position was only strengthened recently when the Supreme Court heard a case challenging the constitutionality of the individual mandate. A decisive ruling is expected by the court later this year.
Biden’s speech Thursday night is expected to focus on how the Trump administration’s push to repeal the law would hurt millions of Americans, especially those with preexisting conditions. He is also likely to emphasize that if the law is repealed, insurance companies would no longer be required to cover people with preexisting conditions.
The speech comes after months of criticism from Biden and other Democrats of the Trump administration’s handling of the healthcare issue.
Biden’s speech will likely be a prime-time opportunity to highlight the importance of the ACA and emphasize the importance of keeping it around. Many political analysts believe that a strong defense of the ACA could help Biden energize his base and could be a deciding issue in November’s election.