President Donald Trump reiterated his commitment to changing the country’s health care laws while speaking Wednesday with reporters at the White House.
“Obamacare is a disaster. It’s too expensive by far,” Trump said Wednesday. “The only difference between now and the other administration is that we are administering Obamacare very well. So, we’ve made it better, but it’s still horrible, no good. It’s something that we can’t live with in this country.”
The Trump administration asked a federal court on Monday to invalidate the entirety of the Affordable Care Act, commonly known as Obamacare, by backing a lawsuit brought by Republican state attorneys general. In a one-page filing in the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 5th District in New Orleans, the Justice Department signaled its support of the suit, which argues the law is unconstitutional because Congress repealed fines on people who remain uninsured.
"The Department of Justice has determined that the district court's comprehensive opinion came to the correct conclusion and will support it on appeal," Justice Department spokeswoman Kerri Kupec said in a statement obtained by The Washington Post.
In previous attempts to challenge the health care law, the Trump administration called for a partial repeal of the law that would have left much of it intact, Politico reported.
Despite Trump doubling down on calls to repeal the law, there is no comprehensive Republican bill to replace the Affordable Care Act. And the GOP is not unanimous in its support of changes.
“I’m very disappointed and deeply opposed to the administration seeking to invalidate the entire Affordable Care Act,” Sen. Susan Collins said Wednesday.
GOP pundits and strategists have said a push to repeal and replace would be disastrous for the 2020 election.
Trump told reporters Wednesday that he is confident the law would be struck down.
“If the Supreme Court rules that Obamacare is out, we will have a plan that’s far better than Obamacare,” the president said.
He did not elaborate.
The Associated Press and Cox Media Group Washington News Bureau reporter Jamie Dupree contributed to this report.
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