Governors urge Trump to keep ACA cost-sharing subsidies

Democratic and Republican governors on Wednesday urged the Trump administration, as well as Congress, to continue funding payments to health insurance companies that make Obamacare plans affordable, calling it critical to stabilizing the insurance marketplace (Source: “U.S. governors urge Trump to make insurance payments,” Reuters, Aug. 2, 2017)

Republican President Donald Trump, frustrated that Obamacare survived attempts to repeal it, has threatened to cut off about $8 billion in subsidies that help control costs for low-income Americans under the Affordable Care Act.

"The Administration has the opportunity to stabilize the health insurance market across our nation and ensure that our residents can continue to access affordable health care coverage," said a statement by the Health and Human Services Committee of the National Governors Association.

Some Congressional Republicans have joined Democrats in urging Trump to continue the payments. Republican Senator Lamar Alexander, chairman of the health committee, said Tuesday the president should pay the subsidies through September while lawmakers work on bipartisan legislation to fund the outlays for another year.

But the Senate's No. 2 Republican John Cornyn hesitated when asked Wednesday if he would support such legislation. "I've said before that I'm not in favor of throwing money at insurance companies without reform, so that’s going to be the nature of the conversation," Cornyn told reporters outside his office.