House Republicans' proposed replacement for the Affordable Care Act isn't getting treated with much legitimacy by the White House.
Responding to the 20,000-word plan unveiled Wednesday by House Speaker Paul Ryan, White House spokesman Josh Earnest suggested Republicans themselves didn't believe it would ever become a reality. It was nothing more than a "political document" crafted for the campaign trail, he argued.
"For six years now, Republicans have vowed to put an Obamacare alternative on the floor of the Congress. And for six years now, they have broken that promise," he said. "The proposal they put forward today includes some more details, but the details they put forward today are wildly unpopular, which is why I suspect they will not receive a vote on the floor of the House of Representatives."
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The Republican plan would scrap much of the ACA and replace it with tax credits for individuals to buy their own health insurance.
It would also turn Medicaid into a federal block grant program that states would be left to spend as they choose. The Medicare eligibility age would soon be raised to 67 from 65, and the federal government would fund high-risk pools open to those who are denied insurance because of pre-existing conditions.
However, the plan does not offer an estimated total cost for the plan, including the size of the tax credits that would be extended to individuals. Republicans have said that the specifics would be worked out if and when the party gets a chance to advance legislation next year.
That's a big "if," however. Not only will Hillary Clinton, who is favored to be the next president, not have anything to do with a plan to scrap Obamacare, but Donald Trump, the GOP nominee, has shown very little interest in the types of market-oriented changes to entitlement programs that Ryan and many other Republicans are pushing.
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