CAHC’s Joel White was interviewed by Politico about what we can expect in regards to health policy with a Harris administration versus a Trump administration.
“Both candidates will pursue an aggressive health agenda through expansive regulatory and legislative efforts,” says Joel White, founder and president of Horizon Government Affairs. He said this would likely include changes to government-run programs, increasing controls on drug prices, and addressing inflation effects.
The number one voter health concern in swing states is affordability, which people are right to be concerned about, White said. If current trends continue, the typical American family will spend 40 percent of its income on health care by 2030.
“Both in the campaign and as president, Harris will offer a sense of security by promising government-run health care will be the fix people need,” White said. “She will seek to expand Obamacare subsidies [set to expire in 2025] for the well-off and further weaken access to and affordability of employer coverage and private insurance generally.”
Addressing health costs by expanding competition and unleashing market innovation rather than empowering bureaucrats are Trump’s primary focus, White said. He expects a Trump administration to make efforts to reform broken insurance markets, maybe to address the Affordable Care Act’s built in cost spiral and high deductibles and Medicaid’s degrading access to care. Expanding health savings accounts, short-term plans, and off-ACA exchange options, as well as Medicaid reforms and addressing core cost drivers, can be expected under Trump, said policy analysts.