Category: Politics

President Donald Trump’s first actions in the Oval Office included rolling back healthcare policies put forth by former President Joe Biden, including expansions to the Affordable Care Act (ACA), otherwise known as “ObamaCare.”  

Directly after he was sworn in on Monday, Trump moved quickly to revoke a long list of Biden executive orders covering a wide range of issues. Two of the orders that were revoked included efforts by Biden to expand access to the ACA and restore the federal program “to the way it was before Trump became president” the first time around.

The move angered Democrats, who argued the action was an “attack” on the federal health insurance program.

“Donald Trump’s immediate priority as president is ripping away affordable health care coverage for tens of millions of Americans and screwing over people with preexisting conditions,” the Democratic National Committee said in a Tuesday statement. 

Shortly after taking office in January 2021, Biden passed Executive Order 14009, titled the “Strengthening Medicaid and the Affordable Care Act.” The move, which Trump rescinded as part of his Day One executive actions, doubled the window of time that uninsured Americans had to apply to participate in the federal insurance program. Under Trump’s first term, the ACA’s open enrollment period was six weeks long.  

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In addition to expanding the open enrollment period, Biden’s January 2021 executive order also directed all relevant federal agencies to examine their policies and implement any necessary changes to help get more people covered under the ACA.

Meanwhile, in April of the following year, Biden signed a second executive order on “Continuing to Strengthen Americans’ Access to Affordable, Quality Health Coverage,” which Trump also reversed on Monday. The April order from Biden directed the Department of Health and Human Services to analyze new policies aimed at “exploring how medical debts are collected from beneficiaries,” in order to find new ways to reduce “the burden of medical debt on working families and individuals across the country.” 

Consistent with both of these orders, agencies facilitated the expansion of the ACA through new eligibility provisions, increased funding to groups that help people sign up for the ACA, and more. 

Other changes enacted by Trump during his first days in office included the revocation of a Biden-era policy that directed Medicare and Medicaid to investigate how to lower drug costs. In response to that order, the U.S. Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) implemented a $2 cap for certain generic drugs, ensured Medicare beneficiaries did not overpay for drugs that received accelerated approval, and helped state Medicaid programs pay for certain high-cost, cutting-edge therapies. Biden’s policy that capped insulin costs at $35 and implemented a $2,000 out-of-pocket maximum for prescription drug costs went unaffected by Trump’s Day One orders.

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Trump also acted during his first day in office to rescind several of Biden’s COVID-19 health orders, such as directives to ensure equity in the pandemic response and COVID-19 vaccine requirements for federal workers. He withdrew the U.S. from its participation in the World Health Organization, as well.

The Democratic National Committee argued Tuesday that Trump was “screwing over people with pre-existing conditions.” 

“Donald Trump’s immediate priority as president is ripping away affordable health care coverage for tens of millions of Americans,” the DNC said in a Tuesday statement. “Thanks to the Biden-Harris administration, more Americans have health coverage than ever before, and Trump wants to unwind this progress even though the American people overwhelmingly support the ACA. Trump’s plans will do nothing but raise costs and make Americans sicker.”

Yet, according to a health policy expert from Vanderbilt University, the moves Trump made on health policies will likely not be consequential when it comes to how much Americans are paying for their healthcare. 

An emergency sign points to the entrance to Scripps Memorial Hospital in La Jolla, California, March 23, 2017. (Reuters/Mike Blake)

“When administrations change over, many of them want to undo some of the actions of other presidents, even when those are more symbolic,” Dr. Stacie Dusetzina, a professor at Vanderbilt’s Department of Health Policy told NBC News. “It could mean that the Trump administration is not interested in pursuing any of the work that has since developed out of these executive orders.”

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Fox News Digital reached out to the Trump administration for comment, but did not receive a response by publication time.