House Republicans began disclosing details on an early draft of their Affordable Care Act replacement plan at a closed-door caucus meeting May 12, according to the Morning Consult. The plan includes changes to essentially all aspects of the healthcare system, including changes to Medicare, Medicaid and the individual insurance market.
Many of the ideas put forth at the Thursday meeting align with conservative proposals previously outlined by House Speaker Paul Ryan (R-Wis.).
Here are six things to know about the GOP-led ACA replacement plan, which is still under development, according to the Morning Consult.
1. Rep. Fred Upton (R-Mich.), chairman of the Energy and Commerce Committee, declined to divulge too many details on what's included in the ACA replacement blueprint, but he said he expects the document to be released in June.
2. Rep. Upton did say a top priority in the GOP replacement plan is to ensure sick people will continue to receive health insurance, and not be excluded because of any preexisting conditions.
3. Other topics discussed during the Thursday meeting include taxation of individual and employer-sponsored insurance, which would likely be leveled out under the GOP plan, according to the report.
4. Changes to Medicare would include enhancing Medicare Advantage and raising the Medicare eligibility age.
5. Leaders in attendance at the meeting also discussed using per-capita caps to fund Medicaid, according to the report. This is an alternative to the current payment system, which uses a federal match rate.
6. Rep. John Fleming (R-La.), a member of the conservative House Freedom Caucus, said the group didn't discuss challenges or the how-to on transitioning from the current healthcare system to the replacement plan, but he said he is confident people would not lose their insurance.
"I think that there would be a reasonable transition period," said Rep. Fleming, according to the report. "The idea is to make healthcare more affordable so more people who want insurance can get it."