The Patient Choice, Affordability, Responsibility, and Empowerment, or CARE, Act would do away with many core PPACA provisions such as the individual mandate, which requires people to purchase health plans or pay a fine. The proposal also forgoes a section of the PPACA banning insurance companies from charging older, sicker people more than three times what they charge young, healthy enrollees.
Furthermore, under the CARE Act, people with pre-existing conditions would only have “continuous coverage” protection, meaning health insurers wouldn’t be able to deny them coverage as long as those with pre-existing conditions maintained “continuous coverage from one plan to another.”
While the PPACA gives states the option of expanding Medicaid, the CARE Act would give states more flexibility to allow them to reform their health insurance programs for the poor. For instance, the proposal would require HHS to respond to Medicaid waiver requests in a timelier manner and give states the option to negotiate a broad, outcome-based program operational agreement with CMS.
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