Biden Victory: What It Means for COVID and Healthcare
Biden Victory: What It Means for COVID and Healthcare
Joe Biden's victory paves the way for healthcare to become a prominent priority in his presidency.
The former vice president charted a big health agenda: stepping up the federal response to COVID-19, strengthening the Affordable Care Act, creating a new "public choice" to cover uninsured Americans, and expanding Medicare and Medicare.
But experts say the president-elect's long list of health duties is likely to face significant hurdles in Congress and the courts.
For example, Biden's ambitious proposals on COVID-19 - including his recent call for national mandate - may face legal challenges and face political hurdles on Capitol Hill, where a divided Congress may face.
Joseph Antos, Ph.D., a health policy expert at the conservative American Enterprise Institute, expects Biden to face the same kind of "deadlock" in Congress that President Barack Obama faced during his second term.
Joe Biden's victory paves the way for healthcare to become a prominent priority in his presidency.
The former vice president charted a big health agenda: stepping up the federal response to COVID-19, strengthening the Affordable Care Act, creating a new "public choice" to cover uninsured Americans, and expanding Medicare and Medicare.
But experts say the president-elect's long list of health duties is likely to face significant hurdles in Congress and the courts.
For example, Biden's ambitious proposals on COVID-19 - including his recent call for national mandate - may face legal challenges and face political hurdles on Capitol Hill, where a divided Congress may face.
Joseph Antos, Ph.D., a health policy expert at the conservative American Enterprise Institute, expects Biden to face the same kind of "deadlock" in Congress that President Barack Obama faced during his second term.
The administration has spent about $ 225 million on COVID-19 testing efforts, with a special focus on rural areas.
Trump launched Operation Warp Speed to accelerate the course of the vaccine. As part of this, the federal government has contracted with six pharmaceutical companies, spending nearly $ 11 billion. The operation aims to provide at least 300 million doses of the Coronavirus vaccine by January 2021.
Antos would like to see a "more sophisticated approach to social distancing" for the president-elect that takes into account the different challenges facing Americans depending on their income, work status, and other factors during the pandemic.
“There are a lot of people in this country where working from home is good and their jobs are safe,” he notes. "He's the guy who used to work in a closed restaurant, he's the line worker in a factory that has severely cut back on hours. They are mostly lower middle class, low-income, middle-class, not elite."
`` And the policies have not paid enough attention to the fact that their circumstances and their deals will differ from the trade-offs for someone who has nothing to worry about economically.
"So, what we need is a more flexible policy [] that will give people the information they need and give them the financial support they need as well ... so that they can make good decisions for themselves and their families. Don't do that."
Obamacare on the Blocks?
A Supreme Court decision to hear another case seeking to repeal the Medicare Act could set Biden's health agenda a major setback - and endanger the medical care of millions of Americans.
On November 10, the Supreme Court will hear oral arguments in a lawsuit that would drop all of Obama's services. No decision is expected until next year.
The court previously supported the 2010 bill, which Biden helped pass through Congress as Vice President. But legal experts say the addition of right-leaning Supreme Court Justice Amy Connie Barrett to the court last month gives the court a clear conservative majority that could spell the end of Obama.
Republicans have opposed the law since it passed, but were unable to muster the vote to repeal it, or pass an alternative
Antos of the American Enterprise Institute notes that conservatives believe the law has increased health care and insurance costs over the past decade, in part due to the protections it provides to Americans who have pre-existing conditions and requires insurers to introduce "gold-plated" policies. comprehensive.
"This led to higher costs, introduced plans that were not very robust, exposed people to high risks in the same [insurance group], increased costs for everyone, and authorized the employer ... These are all the reasons," he says.
The Supreme Court is not expected to issue a ruling on the Affordable Care Act before the middle of next year. But the uncertainty is likely to prompt Biden's proposals to expand the law.
Inverting the Obamacare System will have massive effects on millions of Americans:
As many as 133 million Americans - nearly half of the US population - with pre-existing conditions may find it difficult, if not impossible, to find affordable health insurance. This number does not include Americans with COVID-19.
About 165 million people who need expensive treatments - for cancer and other conditions - will no longer be protected from the huge costs of care by federal limits on out-of-pocket expenses required by the Affordable Care Act.
An estimated 21 million people who now buy insurance through Obamacare Markets could lose their coverage.
12 million others on Medicaid could find themselves without insurance.
At least 2 million young people aged 26 or younger who are now subject to their parents' health policies can start working.
The millions of people who use Medicare may face higher costs.
Federal subsidies will disappear for low-income Americans to buy policies.
Throughout the campaign, Biden repeatedly stressed the need to preserve provisions of law that prevent insurance companies from denying coverage to Americans with pre-existing conditions, such as diabetes, cancer and heart disease. It also prohibits higher premiums based on health status, age or gender.
Biden also pledged to uphold the law as president.
He has proposed a variety of additions to the Affordable Care Act that he says will "secure over 97% of Americans," according to the Biden campaign website.
Biden's proposals include larger federal subsidies to help low- and middle-income Americans pay for policies purchased through Obamacare's insurance markets.
Biden's boldest proposal is to create a "public choice" insurance - a Medicare-like program that small companies and individuals can choose if they do not have coverage, cannot afford it, or do not like employer-based work. coverage.
It will also automatically enroll millions of uninsured Americans living in the 14 states that have not expanded Medicaid, which covers people with low incomes.
But such a plan would require congressional approval - including the "supermajority" of 60 votes in the Senate to disrupt a potential Republican disruption. That would be a major challenge Biden would have to overcome, with an even split in Congress.
Corlett says the White House will also have to defeat tough lobbyists from some of the most influential industrial interest groups in Washington.
"I'm not sure they will get all the votes from the Democrats," she says.
"So, it will be an uphill battle to pass a generic option."
Collectively, Biden's plans to expand the Obamacare program are expected to cost $ 750 billion over 10 years. Much of this funding, he said, will come from raising taxes on the wealthy.
This means it will likely require congressional approval, which Antos suggests is unlikely given the polarization on Capitol Hill.
Medicare, Medicaid, and drug costs
Biden called for a raft of reforms targeting Medicare, Medicaid and rising drug costs.
In Medicare, which primarily covers seniors 65 and over, Biden has proposed lowering the eligibility age from 65 to 60. That could extend to an additional 20 million Americans.
In Medicaid, the healthcare safety net for low-income Americans with disabilities, the president-elect supports increased federal funding for states during the current economic crisis, and possibly beyond.
Medicare is likely to become a major focus area for the new administration, given the pressures the pandemic places on Medicare financing.
In April, Medicare trustees said the program's Part A trust fund, which pays for hospital and inpatient care, may start running out in 2026.
But these forecasts did not include the impact of COVID-19. Some economists have since speculated that Medicare Part A may become insolvent as early as 2022.
Medicare Part B, which pays physician and outpatient costs, is funded by public tax funding and beneficiaries' insurance premiums, so it has no risk of dehydration.
Adding to these pressures is an executive order signed by Trump in August to temporarily defer payroll taxes, a key financing tool for Medicare and Social Security.
Under these taxes, employees pay 6.2% of their earnings (on annual income of $ 137,700) toward Social Security and 1.45% for Medicare taxes in each pay period. Employers pay the same rate per salary, adding up to a 12.4% Social Security tax and 2.9% Medicare tax.
Biden has said he will cancel the tax cut when he takes office.
But to get to deal with Medicare and Medicaid funding issues, he will likely need support from Congress. Corlett and other experts say this could present a challenge while the nation remains in the grip of the coronavirus pandemic.
In addition to his Medicare and Medicare reforms, Biden proposed several plans to lower drug prices, a subset of rising Medicare and Insurance costs.
US spending on prescription drugs has increased nearly 42% over the past decade - from $ 253.1 billion in 2010 to $ 358.7 billion in 2020 (projected) - according to the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services.
In 2020, retail prices for 460 commonly prescribed drugs rose an average of 5.2%, according to a new analysis by 3 Axis Advisors, a health research firm.
This is more than double the expected rate of inflation.
To control drug costs, Biden supports legislation passed by the House of Representatives led by Democrats last year that would enable Medicare to negotiate drug prices with drug companies, as private insurers do.
Federal law now prohibits Medicare from negotiating prices on behalf of the 67.7 million Americans who use it. Pharmaceutical companies and many Republican leaders argue that the current law is necessary to allow them to spend more on research and development of new drugs.
Additionally, Biden supports the idea of lifting the ban on importing drugs from foreign countries at lower cost.
It also supports the creation of an independent review board to set price limits for new drugs without competitors. Increased availability of high-quality generic drugs; End tax exemptions for drug company ads; And restrict their scope to raise prices.
All of these proposals will likely require congressional approval and could face legal challenges in the courts.
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