(HUFPOST) ― “Unwinding those changes ― going back to a time when healthy people could get less expensive, less generous policies, even if it raises premiums for more comprehensive coverage ― has been the common thread in pretty much every GOP health policy effort of the last year, including proposals to repeal Obamacare. And that’s very much the goal of the new regulation.”
President Donald Trump’s campaign to roll back the Affordable Care Act’s health insurance reforms just took a step forward.
The Department of Labor on Thursday proposed a regulation that would make it easier for some individuals and small businesses to get coverage exempt from some key Obamacare rules, including a requirement that all plans cover 10 “essential” benefits.
It’s impossible to say definitively how big an impact the proposed changes would have, or even when or if they will take effect. Like all new regulatory shifts, they must first go through a formal review process, with opportunity for public comment, before they become final.
Click to continue reading. By Jonathan Cohn, Jan 4, 2018.