Governing is above all a question of priorities.
Earlier this year, as tens of millions of Americans faced skyrocketing health insurance premiums and millions were at risk of losing coverage, congressional Republicans refused to spend the funds needed to help them.
PoliticusUSA is 100% independent news and opinion. Support our work by becoming a subscriber.
According to the Committee for a Responsible Federal Budget:
With the Affordable Care Act’s (ACA) enhanced subsidies set to expire soon, several policymakers have proposed plans to expand the improvements. You can learn more about ACA grants here. We estimate that extending the improvements without offsets would increase deficits by approximately $30 billion for a one-year extension and $350 billion over ten years for a permanent extension.
In part to reduce these costs, several plans have added proposed income thresholds to grants, incorporated new program integrity measures, or added additional reforms. Many also suggested a temporary rather than permanent extension.
The cost could have been reduced or offset by making the extension temporary or adding reforms to the grant program.
Human lives are at stake, but Republicans have said the country cannot afford it.
A few months later, Republicans are tripping over themselves to give Donald Trump $1 billion to fund his supposedly privately funded ballroom.