What could a 'skinny repeal' of Obamacare mean for you?
WASHINGTON — Unable to pass broader legislation to rewrite the Affordable Care Act, Senate Republicans seem more likely at this point to pass something that would qualify as a "skinny repeal" of Obamacare.
It’s unclear what that would end up being. Thursday afternoon the Senate is expected to vote on dozens of amendments, and at the end of the process — probably late Friday or early Saturday — they probably still will still not have a meaningful repeal bill, because they have been unable to unite 50 Senators behind any plan.
At that point, the expectation is that Republican leaders will offer a few narrow provisions they think could get 50 votes to pass, giving them a bill they could at least take to a conference with House Republicans where they would negotiate some kind of broader health care overhaul. The House has passed its own bill that President Trump has called "mean" and the Senate could not pass.
The Senate might be able to pass narrow language focusing on eliminating mandates for individuals to obtain insurance coverage and employers to provide it, and ending one of the least-popular Obamacare taxes. But it is really anybody's guess at this point what provisions can get 50 votes in the Senate. It is also not clear whether House Republicans would accept a "skinny repeal" just to get a bill to the president's desk.
If Congress does end up passing this kind of "skinny repeal," here's how it could affect you if it’s narrowly targeted:
Would you get a tax cut?
Most of the taxes imposed by the ACA to pay for extending health coverage to more Americans would remain. The exception is a 2.3% excise tax on pacemakers, artificial hips and other medical devices. ACA taxes on insurance and pharmaceutical companies would remain, as would taxes on investment income, higher earnings, high-cost employer-provided plans and tanning beds.
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What would happen to insurance premiums?
If the mandates are removed, plans sold to those who aren’t offered coverage through an employer or a government program would become more expensive. That’s because without the individual mandate, fewer people would buy insurance and those most likely to opt out are younger, healthier customers. With fewer healthy customers offsetting the costs of sicker ones, premiums would rise. The nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office previously estimated plans would become about 20% more expensive without the individual mandate.
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