Sign up for our daily briefing
Make your busy days simpler with Axios AM/PM. Catch up on what's new and why it matters in just 5 minutes.
Stay on top of the latest market trends
Subscribe to Axios Markets for the latest market trends and economic insights. Sign up for free.
Sports news worthy of your time
Binge on the stats and stories that drive the sports world with Axios Sports. Sign up for free.
Tech news worthy of your time
Get our smart take on technology from the Valley and D.C. with Axios Login. Sign up for free.
Get the inside stories
Get an insider's guide to the new White House with Axios Sneak Peek. Sign up for free.
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
Want a daily digest of the top Denver news?
Get a daily digest of the most important stories affecting your hometown with Axios Denver
Want a daily digest of the top Des Moines news?
Get a daily digest of the most important stories affecting your hometown with Axios Des Moines
Want a daily digest of the top Twin Cities news?
Get a daily digest of the most important stories affecting your hometown with Axios Twin Cities
Want a daily digest of the top Tampa Bay news?
Get a daily digest of the most important stories affecting your hometown with Axios Tampa Bay
Want a daily digest of the top Charlotte news?
Get a daily digest of the most important stories affecting your hometown with Axios Charlotte
President Trump wants to repeal the individual mandate. AP Photo/Evan Vucci
President Trump weighed in this morning on the internal GOP debate over whether to try to repeal the Affordable Care Act's individual mandate as part of a tax reform bill.
Wouldn't it be great to Repeal the very unfair and unpopular Individual Mandate in ObamaCare and use those savings for further Tax Cuts.....— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) November 1, 2017
Why it matters: This move would likely open up the exact same rifts that sunk Republicans' health care efforts earlier this year, making tax reform even harder and imperiling the party's next-best chance for a legislative victory.
What it means: According to the Congressional Budget Office, repealing the ACA's individual mandate would increase the number of uninsured Americans by about 15 million; cause premiums to rise; and save the federal government roughly $380 billion over a decade. (Because fewer people would have insurance, the government would spend less on the ACA's subsidies.)
- That's a lot of savings to help make up for the revenue the government would lose through big tax cuts.
- And the individual mandate is an unpopular part of the ACA — with voters overall, and especially with conservatives.
- But because it would come at the cost of an unstable insurance market, it'll be a hard sell for the same moderate Republicans who opposed their party's repeal-and-replace bills.