DesJarlais faces Obamacare dilemma if Clinton wins White House
If he's wrong about Clinton, he realizes, then the 2010 health care law is probably here to stay. And that creates a dilemma for the
Does he continue on a pointless quest to overturn it? Or does he try to work with Clinton to fix the parts that aren't working?
DesJarlais says he'd be willing to consider whatever plan Clinton might offer.
"I'd look at any legislation to see if it has merit," he said.
The Affordable Care Act, now six years old, has had a rough couple of weeks.
Insurance giant Aetna disclosed in mid-August that in 2017 it will pull out of the federal online exchange -- HealthCare.gov -- in most of the states where the exchange operates and will sell policies only in
Then, this week, Tennessee Commerce and Insurance Commissioner
Cigna was given permission to boost its rates an average of 46.3 percent.
"Tennesseans cannot afford 44 to 62 percent Obamacare price increases that will force them to make difficult decisions about their daily lives and their family budgets,"
No matter which party moves into the
DesJarlais, a physician, offered the same dire prognosis.
Obamacare "needs to be repealed," he said. "It hasn't worked from the get-go. People didn't want it. It's failing just like we thought it would."
What happens next depends on whether Clinton, the Democratic presidential nominee, or
Clinton has said she would defend and expand the Affordable Care Act while working to bring down out-of-pocket costs such as deductibles and copayments, reduce the cost of prescription drugs and offer incentives to encourage states to expand
Trump says that on his first day in office, he would ask
Trump's approach is more in line with what DesJarlais and other congressional
Repealing Obamacare and rebuilding it from the ground up remains the ultimate goal, DesJarlais said. But if Clinton is president, it's a goal that will be unattainable for at least the next four years.
The only other option would to try to fix the existing law.
"If she doesn't repeal it, there's going to have to be major reforms to it," DesJarlais said. "It can't exist in its current form."
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