Searching for smart, safe news you can TRUST?
Support safe, smart, REAL journalism. Sign up for our Axios AM & PM newsletters and get smarter, faster.
Catch up on coronavirus stories and special reports, curated by Mike Allen everyday
Catch up on coronavirus stories and special reports, curated by Mike Allen everyday
Denver news in your inbox
Catch up on the most important stories affecting your hometown with Axios Denver
Des Moines news in your inbox
Catch up on the most important stories affecting your hometown with Axios Des Moines
Minneapolis-St. Paul news in your inbox
Catch up on the most important stories affecting your hometown with Axios Twin Cities
Tampa Bay news in your inbox
Catch up on the most important stories affecting your hometown with Axios Tampa Bay
Charlotte news in your inbox
Catch up on the most important stories affecting your hometown with Axios Charlotte
UnitedHealth Group is excited for short-term plans. AP Photo/Jim Mone, File
UnitedHealth Group, the country's biggest insurer, said it's eager to sell the cheaper, less comprehensive health care plans at the center of President Trump's health care agenda, Bloomberg reported this morning.
Why it matters: It's no surprise that insurers would be excited to sell the kinds of policies Trump is promoting, which don't have to cover much and therefore appeal mainly to healthy customers. UnitedHealth, like several other large insurers, has already pulled back significantly from the Affordable Care Act's exchanges, where coverage must be more comprehensive.
What they're saying: According to Bloomberg, UnitedHealth executives said on a call with investors today that they're "excited" about the kinds of insurance plans Trump promoted in his recent executive order.
- That order expanded access to short-term plans, which cover few services and aren't subject to most of the ACA's benefit mandates. Trump will let people keep that coverage for a year. President Obama had limited it to three months.
- Experts fear those policies will pull healthy people out of the ACA's risk pool, leading to higher premiums for those who remain.
- Trump's order also expanded access to association health plans, which are regulated like large employers' policies.