The Pros and Cons of Trumpcare

Depending on who you talk to and what you read or watch on television, you’ve probably heard both good and bad things about Trumpcare. Below is a list of five pros and five cons about Trumpcare, or the American Health Care Act (AHCA), as it is formally known.

Pros of Trumpcare

Some of the pros of Trumpcare include:

1. Reduced federal deficit
   Trumpcare is projected to reduce the federal deficit by $150 billion by 2026.¹
   
   
2. No more individual mandate
   Trumpcare would eliminate the individual mandate that requires Americans to either have health insurance or face a tax penalty.
   
   
3. Increased HSA contributions
   Trumpcare would increase the amount that can be contributed to a Health Savings Account from $3,400 to $6,550 for individuals, and from $6,750 to $13,100 for families.²
4. Subsidies for people with preexisting conditions
   Americans with a preexisting condition who experience a lapse in coverage may be offered a subsidy in some states to help pay for their insurance.
   
   
5. Repeal of consumer taxes
   Trumpcare would repeal some consumer taxes on things like prescription drugs, medical devices and some health insurance plans.

Cons of Trumpcare

The cons of Trumpcare include:

1. More uninsured Americans
   The elimination of the individual mandate is projected to produce 24 million more uninsured Americans by 2026.³
2. Potential waivers of essential benefits
   Obamacare requires every state to provide coverage for a list of “essential benefits” such as maternity care or mental health care. Under Trumpcare, states could obtain a waiver to be excluded from these requirements and can instead draft their own set of essential benefits.
3. Higher potential costs for people with preexisting conditions
   As mentioned above, subsidies could be offered to some people with preexisting conditions. But these subsidies will be countered by the fact that states will be able to obtain waivers allowing insurance companies to charge higher premiums for people with preexisting conditions who experienced a lapse in coverage.
4. Potentially higher premiums for older adults
   Under current law, insurance companies may charge an older adult up to three times as much as they would charge a younger person for the same plan. Trumpcare is projected to increase that limit to five times as much as a younger person.
5. A rollback of Medicaid expansion
   Obamacare installed funds for states to expand Medicaid, but Trumpcare would cut that funding.

The pros and cons of Trumpcare extend well beyond these basics, and it’s up to each individual to weigh them against each other.

Learn more about the AHCA by reading these featured articles:

• The CBO Report on Trumpcare
• Will Trumpcare Affect Employer-Sponsored Plans?

_{1: https://www.cbo.gov/system/files/115th-congress-2017-2018/costestimate/hr1628.pdf}

_{2: https://www.cnbc.com/2017/03/07/house-republicans-want-to-turbocharge-health-savings-accounts-heres-how-that-would-work.html}

_{3: https://www.nytimes.com/2017/03/21/upshot/fewer-americans-would-be-insured-with-gop-plan-than-with-simple-repeal.html}