Repealing Obamacare mandate saves $338 billion for tax overhaul

(Bloomberg) --Rolling back Obamacare’s requirement that all Americans have health insurance would save the U.S. $338 billion over 10 years, according to the Congressional Budget Office, a smaller benefit than previously projected for a plan favored by the White House.

Republicans are considering repealing the coverage rule in the Affordable Care Act as a way to pay for far-reaching changes in the tax code. The savings would come from the government spending less to subsidize Obamacare plans as more people opt to forgo health coverage.

The estimate is a preview of a report the nonpartisan CBO plans to release later Wednesday.

While ending the mandate could free funds up for a tax overhaul, it would also leave more people without health insurance: CBO estimated in December that 15 million more people would be uninsured if the mandate was ended, and premiums would increase 20 percent. The agency is expected to provide an updated coverage estimate Wednesday.

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A phlebotomist takes blood from a patient at a CCI Health and Wellness Services health center in Gaithersburg, Maryland, U.S., on Tuesday, April 18, 2017. After the failure of Republicans first attempt to repeal and replace the Affordable Care Act and President Donald Trumps subsequent threats to let the program explode, more health insurers are threatening to pull out of the Obamacare health-care program next year, while others may sharply raise the premiums they charge. Photographer: Andrew Harrer/Bloomberg

The mandate is meant to spread risk evenly among healthy and sick people to help keep overall costs down. Without it, healthier people could buy cheaper plans that don’t meet Obamacare coverage requirements, while those who need care, such as people with pre-existing medical conditions, will face rising costs.

Concerns about coverage losses doomed a Senate bill that would have ended the mandate while leaving other parts of the ACA intact, known as “skinny repeal,” in July.

The CBO said in December that overturning the individual mandate would save $416 billion between 2018 and 2026. The agency’s $338 billion savings estimate assumes the mandate would be repealed in 2019 and applies to the years 2018 to 2027. The CBO said that it is revising its methods for calculating the effects of repealing the mandate but isn’t including major changes in this analysis.

President Donald Trump backed overturning the mandate in a tweet last week, pushing for the savings generated to be used “for further Tax Cuts.” House Speaker Paul Ryan said on “Fox News Sunday” that GOP leaders are considering the idea. The House Committee on Ways and Means started debate Monday on the tax bill, called the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act.

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