In a speech on Tuesday, President-elect Joe Biden will seek to highlight the Trump administration’s renewed effort to strip away from the Affordable Care Act (ACA). The measure, which passed in the Supreme Court in 2012, is now facing a new test as the Trump administration is determined to fully dismantle the landmark legislation.
The Trump administration has sought to limit the program’s scope, arguing that the Affordable Care Act is unconstitutional. This was a major pivot from the Obama administration, which was integral in the passing of the program and sought to increase its scope to make healthcare more accessible.
Meanwhile, President-elect Joe Biden is determined to restore the program. He has pointed out that stripping away the Affordable Care Act would threaten to leave 20 million individuals without insurance and reduce the scope of Medicaid by $1 trillion over the next decade. Biden also noted that repealing the health care law would “lead to preventable deaths” and drive up insurance premiums.
Biden continued by saying that a repeal of the ACA would be a serious threat to the health of Americans, noting that the legislation had increased access to healthcare for millions of individuals who would otherwise go without coverage. He also spent time highlighting the Trump administration’s efforts to weaken the regulations associated with the ACA, stating that insurers have the ability to offer plans with numerous coverage gaps, as well as lower premiums in return for substandard coverage.
The speech is intended to raise public awareness of the Trump administration’s efforts to gut the Affordable Care Act and draw attention to the potential implications. The move is part of a larger effort by Biden to push for the legislation’s preservation when he takes office in January. Time will tell how the Supreme Court justices will decide the fate of the Affordable Care Act, but the former vice president is certainly making a strong case in defense of the law.