Statistical measures of the president’s term to date.
Trump’s Numbers
Issues: health insurance
Cotton’s False Insurance Assurance
Republican Sen. Tom Cotton falsely claimed that the amended Senate tax bill eliminating the penalty for not buying health insurance would have “no impact on anyone” who buys coverage through the exchanges established by the Affordable Care Act.
Trump Misleads on Insurer Profits
President Donald Trump has claimed that under the Affordable Care Act, insurance companies have “taken advantage of this country” and “made a fortune,” which he “stopped” by ending payments for cost-sharing subsidies on the ACA marketplaces. That’s misleading, at best, for several reasons.
Groundhog Friday: Trump Edition
President Donald Trump repeated some misleading claims this week as he made the rounds on conservative radio talk shows, delivered a speech to a conservative group and held a press conference with the Senate Republican leader.
Obama’s Final Numbers
The numbers are nearly all in now. What they show about what really happened during the eight years that Barack Obama was president is sometimes different from what politicians claimed.
The Preexisting Conditions Debate, Again
Republicans and Democrats are making competing claims on whether the latest GOP effort to repeal the ACA continues to protect those with preexisting medical conditions. Under the Graham-Cassidy bill, insurers couldn’t refuse to sell policies, but they could price plans based on health status in states that allowed it.
Subsidies, Not Bailouts
President Donald Trump said “bailouts for insurance companies” would “end very soon” if Congress didn’t pass a new health care bill. Sen. Susan Collins said the payments aren’t a bailout, “but rather help people who are very low-income afford their out-of-pocket costs.” Trump distorts the facts.
Selling Insurance Across State Lines
President Donald Trump said that by allowing insurers to sell plans across state lines, “your premiums will be down 60 and 70 percent.” We couldn’t find any study supporting such a decrease, and experts we consulted disputed the idea that overall average premiums would decline significantly.
Senate Bill: Do Premiums Go Up or Down?
The GOP’s Better Care Reconciliation Act would affect premiums on the individual market in different ways, depending on individual circumstances.
Pence Misleads on Premiums
Vice President Mike Pence went too far in claiming that a new report showed that “the average premium across this country has actually doubled under Obamacare.”