Trump Wants ‘Special Session’ To Immediately Repeal Obamacare If He Wins

What has eluded Congressional Republicans for over 60 attempts has become a focus of Trump’s promise as president. Donald Trump has announced that when (not if) he wins the election, he will call a special session of Congress to repeal Obamacare once and for all.

“When we win on Nov. 8 and elect a Republican Congress, we will be able to immediately repeal and replace Obamacare [also known as the Affordable Care Act],” Trump told a King of Prussia, Pennsylvania, rally on November 1, reports Politico. “We have to do it.”

On February 2, the Republican-held US Congress once again passed a law to repeal Obamacare, sending it to the President, who ultimately vetoed the act.

US Senator Chris Murphy, a Democrat from Connecticut, condemned the action.

“House Republicans voting to repeal the Affordable Care Act on actual Groundhog Day is a perfect symbol of their governing philosophy,” Murphy wrote at the time in a statement.

But Trump, speaking at his November 1 rally, predicts a final resolve to the Republicans’ goal.

“I will ask Congress to convene a special session so we can repeal and replace,” Trump said, reports Politico. “And it will be such an honor for me, for you and for everybody in this country because Obamacare has to be replaced. And we will do it, and we will do it very, very quickly. It is a catastrophe.”

“Obamacare means higher prices, fewer choices and lower quality, yet Hillary Clinton wants to expand Obamacare and make it even more expensive,” he continued. “She wants to put the government totally in charge of health care in America. If we don’t repeal and replace Obamacare, we will destroy American healthcare forever. It’s one of the single most important reasons why we must win on Nov. 8. We must win.”

In a Valley Forge, Pennsylvania speech, also on November 1, Trump’s running mate, Indiana Gov. Mike Pence, unveiled an outline for the Republican replacement of Obamacare.

“We’re going to reform health insurance in America with the power of the free market – that’s the American way to meet our healthcare needs in an American future,” Pence said, reports RealClearPolitics.  

Pence continued:

A Trump plan will make health care affordable and will put people back in the driver’s seat of their health care, not the government. We will get rid of the individual mandate, because the government shouldn’t tell you how to spend your money. We will allow people to purchase insurance across state lines, just like you can with your auto or life or other insurance policies. We will create a transition period for those receiving subsidies to ensure that Americans don’t face disruption or other hardship in their coverage.

We will make it easier for Americans to open Health Savings Accounts (HSAs) that they can use to pay for health insurance. The idea of a tax-free account to pay for medical expenses was pioneered in my home state of Indiana to fix the flaws in our health care system.

For Trump, repealing Obamacare is a strong selling point of his campaing. According to Politico, he told the his Pennsylvania crowd, “[w]e have to do it.”

Sources: Politico, Sen. Chris Murphy, RealClearPolitics / Photo Credit: Donald J Trump