This year to date, the US government has paid $7 billion in subsidies to insurance companies under Obamacare. Those payments end now. As in right now – the next payments were due in three days and they will not be paid. While insurance companies have already set fees for next year, some anticipated this move by the Trump administration and set their fees accordingly, others did not. If they wish to adjust their fees at this time, they will need to seek permission from regulators.

This move by Trump has generated an enormous amount of emotional arguments, no less the always present, “People will die!” chorus.

Other complaints range from the instability imposed on the insurance market and the inevitable rise in premiums. To all of this I say, insurance companies and plans are in place for next year. If people are going to die specifically because of this move at least they have another year to figure something out! Insensitive? To that I say, this forces politicians to get their heads out of their backsides and fix this disaster, and it would help if the public could gain an understanding of how bad this law is. It might work for you right at this minute but that means it is not working in a really bad way for a lot of other people. And it’s bigger than healthcare folks, this goes to the heart of capitalism. We need to get back closer to market economy so that natural forces of competition can help regulate the market. Regulating the market through political forces only leads to more special interests, more lobbyists, and more and more taxes, whereby at some point, I say Taxed Enough Already, and The Rent Is Too Damned High!