One of Trump’s biggest plans coming into the White House was that he was going to repeal the Affordable Care Act and replace it with something better.
The plan looked like it would be approved according to PBS, but after, the vote was delayed. President Trump told House Speaker Paul Ryan that it was yes or no and that he would not delay the vote any longer.
Trump’s healthcare plan was not passed.
The president’s new healthcare plan was more focused on the free market. It also supported rolling back the expansion of Medicaid and would not require everyone in the United States to have insurance, as the ACA currently does.
Although citizens would not be punished for not having insurance, they could face a penalty for letting their insurance coverage lapse. This penalty could be insurance companies increasing the premium by 30 percent.
The bill did plan to keep three aspects from the ACA. These provisions include the prohibition on denying coverage to people with pre-existing conditions, the ban on lifetime coverage caps and the rule allowing young people to remain on their parents’ health plans until age 26.
The new healthcare plan wanted to dismantle Obamacare’s aspects that help Americans pay for health insurance with income-based tax credits, taxes on people with high incomes and the penalty for people who do not have health coverage.
The vote to repeal Obamacare and replace it with President Trump’s healthcare plan was supposed to happen on Thursday, March 23.
According to PBS, members of the House Freedom Caucus went to the White House to discuss the plan with President Trump. They were supposed to clear up any questions, but instead many left unfulfilled and had no plans to pass the bill.
The House GOP members delayed the vote until Friday when it was apparent there was not enough support to pass the bill.
Friday morning, a few changes were made to the bill. These included the elimination of some Obamacare coverage requirements and stronger Medicaid benefits.
“It’s up to members of Congress now to decide if they want to be part of the effort to repeal former President Barack Obama’s Affordable Care Act,” White House Press Secretary Sean Spicer said at a news briefing. “The president and his team have committed everything they can to make this thing happen.”
By Friday afternoon, President Trump wanted an answer even though Speaker Ryan encouraged him to cancel the vote because he didn’t think there would be enough votes to pass the bill. Hours later, Ryan contacted Trump once again urging him to reconsider. This time Trump decided to pull the bill.
The Republican Party wants to continue to work on the bill and will try to get it passed again in the future.