Congressional Budget Experts Warn of a Trump Health Care Fiasco in the Making

The House Republican plan to replace the Affordable Care Act has been handled like a state secret, and now we know why. According to estimates this week from the nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office, about 14 million Americans would lose health insurance coverage in just the first year and 24 million by 2026.The Affordable Care Act definitely has problems, as we've pointed out on these pages before. But it has provided since its inception health coverage to millions of Americans. The new budget report makes it clear this reform plan isn't the way to go. Stripping millions of Americans of health care is a lose-lose situation - for both struggling Americans and for Republicans, who would go down in history as responsible for a health-care catastrophe. As President Trump recently acknowledged, reforming the Affordable Care Act is complicated. He pledged in his State of the Union address just two weeks ago to replace it with a plan that would give people cheaper insurance, better coverage, more choices, and a continued guarantee that pre-existing conditions won't deny anyone. It's a tough needle to thread. Republicans do themselves and their country no favors by rushing forward with a plan that could turn already problematic patient care into a chaotic mess.  Continue reading...