By Ed Haislemaier -
“There has been considerable focus on how legislation to repeal and replace Obamacare could affect the 20 million individuals receiving subsidized coverage through the exchanges and the Medicaid expansion. However, much less attention has been paid to another group of 25 million individuals who also have a significant personal stake in the outcome.
“That group of 25 million consists of the 10 million people with individual-market coverage who do not qualify for Obamacare subsidies (about 80 percent of the pre-Obamacare individual market of 12 million), plus at least another 15 million with coverage through small group plans (who also get no subsidies). Some of those 25 million are still covered by pre-Obamacare plans (which they risk losing), with the rest in plans that are subject to Obamacare’s costly insurance market provisions.
“These are the individuals that most need relief from Obamacare’s soaring premiums. Any repeal-and-replace legislation needs to include provisions that enable them once again to buy health insurance that is not burdened by the additional cost of federal benefit mandates or distorted by Obamacare’s age rating restrictions. This is why one of the top priorities for health reform has been to restore to states the authority to regulate insurance markets, which Obamacare removed from them by layering on new federal insurance mandates. States should be freed from Obamacare’s benefit mandates, the minimum actuarial value requirement, and age-rating restrictions.”
More at: The Heritage Foundation
