Trump doesn't know it, but his attempt to blow up Obamacare could help California and other states
The fog is still swirling around President Trumps assaults last week on the Affordable Care Act.
Thats especially true of his cancellation of cost-sharing reduction payments to health insurers, possibly the most poorly understood subsidies of the ACA. Trumps lack of understanding of Americas healthcare system appears to be almost infinite, so its hardly surprising that he doesnt grasp the complexities of the cost-sharing reduction payments. But the misunderstandings extend to congressional Republicans, and even Democrats.
The truth is that Trumps action could lead to more Americans receiving subsidized health coverage. It could also produce a windfall for states including California. To understand how that could happen, one has to understand how these subsidies work.
A couple of preliminary points: Theyre not bailouts of insurance companies, as Trump described them. And the motion filed by California, 17 other states and the District of Columbia to block Trumps action should still go ahead, for reasons well get to in a moment.
http://www.latimes.com/business/hiltzik/la-fi-hiltzik-trump-obamacare-20171016-story.html