Posted on 11/24/2025 12:46:06 PM PST by Miami Rebel
President Donald Trump is delaying a planned announcement of a proposal to extend Affordable Care Act subsidies, according to two White House officials, after congressional Republicans pushed back against the president’s sudden embrace of the expiring subsidies.
Trump was expected to unveil a plan aimed at halting ACA premium spikes on Monday, as first reported by MS NOW. But the reveal has been postponed — though not canceled — said the White House officials, who were granted anonymity to discuss the internal strategy.
Both White House officials noted that Trump’s announcement — which was never officially on the schedule — would take place soon. But they acknowledged the initial plan, which would have sought to end “surprise premium hikes” for those on Obamacare programs, was being actively reworked.
“Until President Trump makes an announcement himself, any reporting about the Administration’s healthcare positions is mere speculation,” White House spokesman Kush Desai said.
While the White House sought to downplay the seriousness of the delay, Republicans indicated they were surprised and angered by a plan that would help preserve the Affordable Care Act.
“I wasn’t expecting the proposal to be Obamacare-lite,” a conservative House Republican, who requested anonymity to discuss the yet-to-be-released plan. “Absolutely not supportive of extending ACA subsidies.”
“I’ve talked to enough [Republicans] to know that people weren’t expecting this and aren’t happy about it,” this lawmaker added. “I don’t see how a proposal like this has any chance of getting majority Republican support. We need to be focused on health care, but extending Obamacare isn’t even serious.”
Another conservative House Republican, who also requested anonymity to speak candidly about the proposal, told MS NOW that lawmakers knew the White House was working on something. “But not with a primary focus on the subsidies,” this Republican said.
‘I wasn’t expecting the proposal to be Obamacare-lite,’ said a conservative House Republican, who requested anonymity to discuss the yet-to-be-released plan. ‘Absolutely not supportive of extending ACA subsidies.’
The White House appears not to have sought significant input from Capitol Hill on the plan, with Republicans who spoke to MS NOW suggesting that most lawmakers were unaware the administration’s health care proposal would include an extension of the subsidies. Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., and Senate Majority Leader John Thune, R-S.D., were expected to be briefed for the first time on the plan Sunday afternoon.
The delay comes as the president — and Hill Republicans — are caught in a bind over health care. Covid-era subsidies for nearly 22 million Americans who get their health insurance through the ACA exchanges are set to lose those plans at the end of the year, a change that would cause massive price spikes in red and blue states alike.
Thune promised a vote on extending the subsidies to Democrats, who agreed to end the recent government shutdown as long as they secured a vote to extend them.
Despite the lack of an official announcement, some Republicans who were learning the broad strokes of Trump’s plan from the media were not especially happy with it.
“I would absolutely NOT be supportive of that,” Rep. Eric Burlison, R-Mo., told MS NOW of extending the subsidies on Monday morning. “Since I last checked, Covid has been over for some time. This is definitely not the DOGE thing to do,” he added, referring to the cost-cutting agency formerly run by president adviser Elon Musk.
Other Republicans were more succinct. When MS NOW asked fellow Freedom Caucus member Greg Steube, R-Fla., if he would be supportive of the White House health-care proposal, he had a two-letter response: “No.”
Another conservative House Republican, who requested anonymity to discuss the yet-to-be-released plan, told MS NOW they were also skeptical of the idea.
“Fix health care for working Americans or don’t talk to me about subsidies,” this lawmaker said.
Trump’s proposal — whatever it may end up being, and whenever it may end up coming — would mark a significant development in the ongoing health care discussion in Washington. If Republicans suddenly relented and agreed to extend the ACA subsidies, even in a slightly modified form, that would mark a significant win for Democrats.
For weeks, Republicans have railed against extending the subsidies, arguing that Obamacare is broken and that extending the subsidies would amount to padding the coffers of insurance companies.
“I’m not putting a Band-Aid on something that’s broken,” Sen. Markwayne Mullin, R-Okla., told reporters last week.
Yep. I remember back before Trump was first elected, a reasonable liberal friend of mine was supportive of him, and told me, "Trump is in favor of single payer healthcare."
Universal healthcare would be better. Let everyone have a lousy government HMO for cheap. Pay cash if you want something better.
The current insurance-based system is hyper-inflationary and is not Free Market economics.
That would be a bold move. It would be like Nixon opening China.
Please do not propagandize.
When you have universal healthcare/commiecare republicans on one side,
And you have constitutional/limited government republicans on the other side,
there is no circle.
And since we have resoundingly proved there is no circle, there cannot by definition be any circular firing squad.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.