Should Congress pass legislation to restore payments to health insurers that the President derided as "bailouts" just five months ago? If it did so, would the legislation increase or decrease overall federal spending?
Those are the key questions now under consideration as Congress rushes to pass a full-year appropriations bill for the entire federal government. Some House and Senate members would like to attach to the must-pass bill provisions which would stabilize the insurance markets established by the Affordable Care Act (ACA). Among the items being discussed for inclusion is a temporary four-year) appropriation for cost-sharing reduction (CSR) payments, which compensate insurers for lowering the cost-sharing requirements for enrollees with incomes between 100 and 250 percent of the federal poverty level (FPL). The cost of the CSR subsidy was about $7 billion in 2016.
