(The Center Square) – A panel of state senators and health care representatives discussed how election results could impact industry policy, including the Affordable Care Act, Medicaid, prescription drug prices and abortion, among other issues.
Wisconsin Health News hosted the panel Tuesday, beginning with a discussion about the Republican National Committee’s recently released health care agenda and what the state of health care could look like under another Trump administration.
The agenda pledges to protect Medicare and lower health care costs by introducing more free-market competition into the heavily regulated sector.
Eric Borgerding, CEO of the Wisconsin Hospital Association, said it’s notable that protecting the Affordable Care Act is not mentioned. The Affordable Care Act, enacted in 2010, expanded Medicaid eligibility, among other changes.
“I think if President Biden is reelected we are going to see the ACA strengthened,” said state Sen. LaTonya Johnson, D-Milwaukee. “We need to make sure that not only are we covering people, but we’re providing a fair and equitable reimbursement rate. Expanding ACA, we could raise those reimbursement rates. We could ensure that not only will it cover more people, but those hospitals, the clinics, the providers can get paid more money.”
In the wake of the U.S. Supreme Court’s Chevron decision, how federal agencies are run – including agencies related to health care – could depend largely on who sits in the White House. Though Republicans have lobbied to repeal the program in the past, Borgerding believes Trump, if reelected, will not pursue that path.
“Regulation, in a lot of ways, is really hamstringing hospitals. I could point to several examples,” Borgerding said. “I think we might see from a Trump administration a loosening of the regulatory interpretations around expansion, perhaps. Because I don’t think they’re going to repeal it, I really don’t, I think that’s been proven.”
Both Biden and Trump have addressed rising prescription drug costs during their campaigns and time in office. Brad Wolters from the Marshfield Clinic Health System told the panel that Americans could expect this focus to continue under another Trump administration, given the former president’s previous actions to cap medication prices.
On abortion, state Sen. Pat Testin, R-Stevens Point, agreed with Johnson during the panel that the issue should be presented directly to Wisconsin voters.
“Policy-wise is, let’s see where the people are at on this, and that helps us thread the needle and navigate a very tricky issue,” he said.
The Republican National Convention is in Milwaukee next week, where the party’s health care agenda will be discussed.
