House GOP Health Reform Plan Described as White House Trial Balloon

While the GOP health care reform proposal discussed below has limited legislative prospects at this time because it is unlikely to move forward in the Democratic-controlled House, ANCOR is following the proposal because backing from the White House could mean some ideas in the plan might be tested at the executive or state levels. Proposals around the Affordable Care Act (ACA) are relevant to the disability community because insurance companies consider intellectual / developmental disabilities to be pre-existing conditions, and because access to health care is a key issue for the workforce that supports individuals.

As reported by Politico Pulse:

“REPUBLICAN STUDY COMMITTEE TRIES TO BUILD MOMENTUM FOR PLAN — Rep. Mike Johnson (R-La.), the caucus chair, last week at the White House handed Trump a list of conservative endorsements for the group’s recently unveiled health care plan, POLITICO’s Susannah Luthi reports.

The endorsements — which include the Heritage Foundation, FreedomWorks, Americans for Tax Reform and Americans for Prosperity — help demonstrate that the plan can be a workable GOP alternative to Democratic proposals, said a source familiar with conversations around the RSC’s plan.

— The RSC plan is a White House test balloon, the source told Susannah — the idea being to ‘see what slings and arrows come, see what needs tweaking and changing, and then let the White House follow it.’

The RSC released its plan last month , blasting Democrats’ support for ‘Medicare for All’ and vowing to protect coverage for people with preexisting conditions. But the plan includes measures that critics say wouldn’t guarantee coverage for sick patients, such as letting states largely decide minimum health benefits.”