New year, new debate on repealing ACA

With today (Jan. 3) being the first day the new Republican-controlled Congress convenes, many senators and representatives are already looking into how to repeal the Affordable Care Act (ACA). Various news outlets are reporting that Republicans will derail the ACA by passing laws to defund it, including the penalties and subsidies that Americans have received under the ACA. However, many Republican leaders, including House Speaker Paul Ryan and President-Elect Donald Trump, have said they want to replace the ACA with a better option, which may include some subsidies for buying health insurance through the exchange and protecting people with pre-existing conditions from being denied coverage.

Without a replacement plan worked out yet, there is speculation that Congress may vote to repeal the law, but wait to actually repeal it.

“There's a lot of ideas out there. Various members of Congress have put out proposals, but they don't have a definitive plan which is where this talk of delay comes in. They may vote to repeal, but not cut off the money immediately while they come up with their replacement plan,” says NPR health policy correspondent Alison Kodjak in an interview on NPR.

About 20 million people are insured because of the ACA.