WASHINGTON (Nexstar) — The Trump Administration and Republican attorneys general are moving forward with a lawsuit to strike down the Affordable Care Act even as they’re encouraging the 3 million newly unemployed workers in the US to sign up.
President Trump said he continues to support the lawsuit brought forward by a number of GOP state attorneys general. But the Center for Medicare and Medicaid Services administrator Seema Verma said it’s not the administration’s top priority.
“Right now, we’re focused on dealing with the pandemic,” Verma said. “Oviously there are problems with the ACA that have created insurance costs that are so expensive that people can’t afford them.”
Oregon Democrat Earl Blumenauer said the President should withdraw his support of the lawsuit.
“That is the biggest outrage, the notion that he would continue to try to undercut health care for millions of Americans,” Blumenauer said.
Even as the Administration works to end the ACA, it’s encouraging more people to sign up for ACA health plans — especially the 3 million Americans who lost their jobs last week because of the coronavirus.
“All of those people can come to the exchange and they can apply for coverage today,” Verma said.
The Supreme Court will hear the case challenging the ACA later this year. In the meantime, Republican Sen. John Kennedy is among those working to prepare for an end to Obamacare with a new piece of legislation.
“It says everybody is going to cover pre-existing conditions, including but not limited to the government,” Kennedy said.
