Office of Management and Budget Director Mick Mulvaney reopened the debate over Affordable Care Act payments to insurers this afternoon, suggesting at a White House briefing that the Trump administration hasn't decided whether to provide the May payments for cost-sharing reduction subsidies.
Flashback: The administration promised Democrats last week that it would keep making the payments for now — a promise that removed a major obstacle to an agreement on the government funding bill.
Why it matters: It was clear last week that the payments would only be temporary, but it wasn't clear how temporary, and now it appears that insurers won't be able to count on them for very long at all.
A White House official tells me nothing has changed. However, now the promise only appears to apply to May: "The White House has told Congress that it will make the May CSR, but has not made any commitment on further payments."
