Trump shares health care plan as Congress debates ACA subsidies

President Donald Trump on Thursday laid out the outlines of a health care plan that the White House claims will lower drug prices and insurance premiums.

The announcement came as Congress’ efforts to expand key tax breaks for the Affordable Care Act face headwinds from Senate Republicans, leaving millions at risk of seeing their health insurance premiums rise.

The Trump administration called the initiative the “Great Health Care Plan,” the president said in a video unveiling the policy Thursday morning.

Trump said: “I call on Congress to pass this framework into law without delay.” “You should do it now.”

The plan would codify deals Trump recently struck with big pharmaceutical companies to lower the cost of some prescription drugs in the United States by tying them to lower prices abroad, as part of his “most favored nation” policy.

More than a dozen drug companies have agreed to lower prices on some products for Medicaid patients in exchange for a three-year exemption from tariffs.

As part of these deals, the companies also agreed to sell some drugs at a discount on Trump’s direct-to-consumer platform, Trump Rx.

In his video announcement, Trump said lower drug prices would go into effect on the platform when it launches this month. He claimed that these prices would fall by up to 500%, although that would mean prices would fall well below $0.

The health care framework would “make more verified safe pharmaceutical drugs available for purchase without a prescription,” according to a White House fact sheet.

It would also allegedly send money for health insurance coverage “directly to the American people” instead of giving “major insurers billions in additional taxpayer-funded subsidy payments,” the fact sheet says. Trump has repeatedly put forward similar proposals in his recent statements.

Additionally, the plan will “fund a cost-sharing reduction program,” which the administration says will “reduce premiums for the most popular Obamacare plan by more than 10%.”

Other components of the policy include requiring health insurers to prominently post coverage comparisons “in plain English” on their websites, along with other information about overhead costs and claim denial rates.

It would also require providers that accept Medicare or Medicaid to “post their rates and fees openly and prominently to avoid surprise medical bills.”

The new proposal from the White House comes as senators remain at loggerheads over a deal to extend support for the now-expired ACA. A bipartisan group of senators has been working for weeks to move forward, but recently ran into a snag over language related to the Hyde Amendment, a law that prohibits the use of federal funds for abortion services.

The White House plan specifically rules out extending Primary Care Act subsidies, which Democrats are demanding be extended as part of any health care deal. The White House had not made a public proposal as of Thursday, but Trump has repeatedly said he wants the money to go directly to patients rather than insurance companies.

Some negotiators wondered whether the White House plan would hinder negotiations.

“We all knew that in order for us to make progress, we were going to have to get approval from the White House,” the Republican senator from Alaska, one of the negotiators, told reporters on Thursday. He added, “Does this take things back if he indicates that he does not support the extension?” [the subsidies]? “I mean, that’s the basis of our plan here.”

Senator Jeanne Shaheen, who is leading the talks on the Democratic side, said on Thursday that she had not seen Trump’s plan yet, but indicated optimism about the discussions.

“Most regions have an agreement, so what we have to do is bring the text of the bill together and then get the final signature so we can talk to our colleagues about what we are proposing,” Sahin told reporters.

A White House official said Thursday that the plan does not close the door to extending support, but it outlines the president’s preferences.

“This does not specifically address those ongoing bipartisan negotiations in Congress,” the White House official said. “It says we would rather the money go to people, rather than insurance companies.”