Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
President Implores Insurers To Help 'Save Americans From Obamacare'
Reuters: Trump Seeks Help Of Insurers To Smooth Obamacare Transition
President Donald Trump sought on Monday to bring the nation's largest insurance companies on board with his plans to overhaul Obamacare, saying their help was needed to deliver a smooth transition to the Republicans' new plan. "We must work together to save Americans from Obamacare – you people know that and everyone knows that - to create more competition and to bring down prices substantially," Trump told insurers at a meeting at the White House. (Humer and Abutaleb, 2/27)
The Washington Post: Trump Urges Insurers To Work Together To ‘Save Americans From Obamacare’
The meeting included leaders from Blue Cross Blue Shield, Cigna, Humana, UnitedHealth Group, Aetna, Anthem, Kaiser Permanente and the industry lobbying group, America's Health Insurance Plans. "We must work together to save Americans from Obamacare," Trump said in public remarks before the closed-door meeting. The remarks came shortly after Trump lambasted the health-care law at the National Governors Association, telling the audience that health care was "an unbelievably complex subject." (Johnson and Eilperin, 2/27)
CQ Roll Call: Trump To Health Insurers: We've Got A 'Great Plan'
President Donald Trump told insurance executives Monday his plan to overhaul the health care system would be "a great plan for the patients, for the people, and hopefully for the companies." He shared no details about the proposal but said it will be “a very competitive plan” that reduces health care costs and improves access to care “very, very substantially." "I think people are going to like it a lot," the president said, according to a pool report. Participants included top executives from major insurers, including UnitedHealth Group, Aetna, Cigna, Humana, Anthem, Kaiser Permanente and the Blue Cross Blue Shield Association, as well as several smaller plans, including Florida Blue, Independence Blue Cross, and Blue Cross Blue Shield of North Carolina. Matt Eyles, an executive vice president at the insurance company's lobbying arm America's Health Insurance Plans, also attended. (Mershon, 2/27)
Modern Healthcare: Health Insurers Optimistic After Meeting With Trump
After meeting with President Donald Trump at the White House early Monday, the CEOs of several large health insurers were optimistic about the future of the health insurance industry if the Affordable Care Act is repealed and replaced. The executives discussed plans to stabilize the individual insurance market. CEOs of Aetna, Anthem, Cigna Corp., Humana, UnitedHealth, Kaiser Permanente and several Blue Cross Blue Shield companies attended the meeting. Industry lobbying group America's Health Insurance Plans, was also in attendance. (Livingston, 2/27)
