Donald Trump’s administration has decided not to reopen Obamacare enrollment for those who are currently uninsured during the coronavirus pandemic.
(Coming from a guy who believes in throwing children in cages, this news isn’t that shocking.) On Tuesday, the Trump administration decided against restoring the Affordable Care Act’s federal exchanges despite the ongoing pandemic. CNN reports that the White House was urged to release a special enrollment period for those without health insurance to purchase Obamacare policies.
Trump made his decision the same day he told communities that the outbreak will bring the U.S. a “painful” two weeks as the virus continues to get worse. But, Democratic officials had been asking the Orange Man to temporarily reopen the exchanges for weeks, and he decided to ignore it. Two major health insurance groups also wrote congressional leaders, asking for the exchanges to be opened. “Given the risk posed by COVID-19, it is more important than ever for people to have health coverage,” the CEOs of America’s Health Insurance Plans and Blue Cross Blue Shield Association wrote.
In the meantime, eleven states that have their own Obamacare exchanges are rolling out temporary enrollment periods for uninsured residents. According to CNN, open enrollment for Obamacare usually runs from Nov.1 to Dec. 15 in the 38 states that use the federal exchange, healthcare.gov. In 2018, there almost 28 million Americans who were not insured, according to the most recent Census Bureau data available. Those who are newly unemployed and have lost their employer-based coverage are eligible for Obamacare and can sign up within 60 days of becoming uninsured.
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