As President Donald Trump and Republicans in Congress are set to move forward with healthcare legislation, Democrats are also pushing their version of a fix to the Affordable Care Act (ACA), also known as “Obamacare.” Senator Tim Kaine (D-VA) was one half of an upper chamber duo that rolled out a proposal today that would allow anyone to buy Medicare plans, a plan dubbed “Medicare X.”
The introduction of the policy proposal comes as the Democratic Party is fractured on its efforts on healthcare, with the radical progressive left pursing the single-payer “Medicare for All,” which has been estimated to cost $33 trillion over 10 years.
Medicare X would leave the existing healthcare system cemented under former President Barack Obama intact, but would create a public option for Medicare provisions. This would allow individuals of any age to purchase plans that would include access to the program’s network of healthcare providers and its range of benefits, like maternity care and mental health services.
Though, just like the current system, it would still be expensive, limit individuals in areas where providers are leaving, and cause a massive inflation in government spending.
The plan would also expand access to tax credits meant for those who are forced to purchase coverage through the Obamacare marketplace. Reportedly, individuals would pay no more than 13 percent of their income toward their insurance premiums for a standard health plan, and the legislation increases the size of tax credits for low-income individuals.
A version of Medicare X was introduced in the the Democrat-controlled U.S. House of Representatives on Monday.
The Hill reports that Senator Kaine, who was Democratic presidential nominee Hillary Clinton’s vice presidential running mate in the 2016 election, remarked that the bill he is co-sponsoring “preserve[s] everything about the existing system. And we just put one additional element into it.”