Within hours of delivering his inauguration speech in which he railed against the special interests that had controlled Washington for eight long years, President Donald Trump took immediate and decisive action by gutting Obamacare’s toughest provision.
Here’s more from WND:
President Trump on Friday, during his first hours in office, targeted Obamacare with an executive order that instructs federal officials “shall” grant exemptions to any “fiscal burden” or “fee” pending under the federal health-care takeover law.
Trump, during his campaign, had promised to repeal and replace the massive federal bureaucracy Obama created with support only from Democrats, a system that dictates what insurance every individual American must buy, including what must be covered.
Trump also promised to attack Obamacare on his first day in office.
He kept that promise, even though the entire law cannot removed by executive order.
To make those moves, Congress already is considering several different replacement proposals, but neither the GOP majority in Congress nor the GOP president in the White House has expressed interest in leaving people without coverage.
Trump’s executive order was titled “Minimizing the economic burden of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act pending repeal.”
He outlined that it is his policy “to seek the prompt repeal of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (Public Law 111-148), as amended (the ‘Act’). In the meantime, pending such repeal, it is imperative for the executive branch to ensure that the law is being efficiently implemented, take all actions consistent with law to minimize the unwarranted economic and regulatory burdens of the Act, and prepare to afford the States more flexibility and control to create a more free and open healthcare market.”
So he ordered that “to the maximum extent permitted by law, the Secretary of Health and Human Services (Secretary) and the heads of all other executive departments and agencies (agencies) with authorities and responsibilities under the Act shall exercise all authority and discretion available to them to waive, defer, grant exemptions from, or delay the implementation of any provision or requirement of the Act that would impose a fiscal burden on any State or a cost, fee, tax, penalty, or regulatory burden on individuals, families, healthcare providers, health insurers, patients, recipients of healthcare services, purchasers of health insurance, or makers of medical devices, products, or medications.”
