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IPFS News Link • Congress-Congressmen

States scramble to avert Obamacare sticker shock after Democrats balk at stabilization effort

• https://www.washingtontimes.com, By Tom Howell Jr.

Politicians at all levels of government are fearing another round of sticker shock for consumers this fall as insurers jack up prices, blaming both the original 2010 health law and the moves Congress and the Trump administration have made to undercut it in the years since.

Capitol Hill had a chance to lower rates with a stabilization bill Republicans had hoped to attach to last week's spending package. But Democrats balked, and Congress likely missed its last chance to act before the new rates are set.

With federal policymakers sputtering, states are plotting their own steps, seeking federal permission for "reinsurance" program that subsidize pricey customers or waiting for final instructions from the Trump administration on short-term plans that don't fully comply with Obamacare's strict coverage requirements.

A few blue states are considering a restoration of the "individual mandate" to buy insurance or pay a tax, after congressional Republicans axed penalties tied to the federal version under Obamacare, starting in 2019.


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