The Trump administration may not enforce the current health insurance mandate rule that requires Americans to carry health insurance or face a penalty, according to adviser Kellyanne Conway's comments on ABC's "This Week" on Sunday.
During the talk show, host George Stephanopoulos asked if President Trump would enforce the mandate, a major linchpin in funding the Affordable Care Act, nicknamed Obamacare.
"What President Trump is doing is, he wants to get rid of that Obamacare penalty almost immediately, because that is something that is really strangling a lot of Americans to have to pay a penalty for not buying...," Conway said on "This Week."
When Stephanopoulos asked again about ending the mandate's enforcement, she added, "He may. But look, we want to make very clear to everyone, that those who are relying upon coverage will not lose it. But you know many people have already lost their health care, millions already lost their health care, because they have it and can't use it because of the explosive skyrocketing premiums, or they literally, George, lost their doctors or insurance plans or their access to health care through Obamacare."
Reuters reported that Trump signed an executive order Friday urging agencies to "waive, defer, grant exemptions from, or delay the implementation" of provisions of the Affordable Care Act deemed to impose fiscal burdens on states, companies or individuals.
Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell told "Fox News Sunday" that there are options available to replacing the Affordable Care Act and the law currently cannot continue without revisions.
"Eight out of 10 want it entirely replaced or dramatically changed," McConnell said on Fox News Sunday. "So, even if Hillary Clinton had won the election, we'd be revisiting Obamacare. The status quo is not an option.
"So, we're going to move carefully, in conjunction with the administration to repeal and replace it with things like health savings accounts and interstate health insurance sales, and high risk pools at the state level to take care of people who have pre-existing conditions. All of these things can work. We want to move the power out to the states and allow them to develop health care programs that work for them," McConnell continued.
Trump Health and Human Services nominee Tom Price said last week at his confirmation hearing that an Obamacare overhaul would first target individual health plans sold on online exchanges and the Medicaid health insurance program for low-income Americans, Reuters reported.
Price said that the law's replacement would not take on changes to Medicare, the federal health insurance program for those 65 and older and people with disabilities.
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