As negotiations in the United States government continued through March 3 2020 on a federal spending package to address the spread of the coronavirus strain known as COVID-19, Politico reported on negotiations stalling between Democratic and Republic
Publication: Affordable Care Act
Truth or Fiction?→ Donald Trump Says He ‘Saved Pre-Existing Conditions in Your Healthcare’
On January 13 2020, United States President Donald Trump tried to attack a Democratic Party presidential candidate for “false advertising” by repeating a lie of his own. In a tweet attacking former New York City mayor Michael Bloomberg, Tr
Truth or Fiction?→ Did President Barack Obama Shut Down the Government to ‘Force Obamacare’ in 2013?
On December 29, 2018, a Facebook user posted a status update claiming that a federal shutdown over border wall funding was similar to one in 2013 — and it was purportedly initiated by President Barack Obama: This was nearly identical to a December 2
Washington Post→ The GOP claim that half of the people paying the Obamacare penalty make less than $25,000
“One of the things I hope we do as part of this tax process is repeal the tax on poor Americans. Right now, about half of the people that pay the penalty under the individual mandate are people who make $25,000 or less” — Sen.
Washington Post→ President Trump’s false claim that insurance companies ‘have made a fortune’ from Obamacare
“We want the money to go to the people. We don’t want the money to go into the pockets. I have a list here where it talks about the insurance companies. … Anthem, big company, from the beginning of Obamacare, 270 percent i
Washington Post→ Is the GOP plan for Medicaid caps really Bill Clinton’s idea?
“As everyone knows, the Medicaid cap per cap was proposed by President Clinton. Now it is seen as this draconian measure.” — Former senator Rick Santorum (R-Pa.), testimony before the Senate Finance Committee, Sept. 25 In touting the
Washington Post→ Sen. Lindsey Graham’s claim that 1996 welfare overhaul ‘worked like a charm’
“In 1996, we block-granted money for welfare reform, and it worked like a charm. We put governors in charge of the program. We held them accountable.” — Sen. Lindsey O. Graham (R-S.C.), remarks during a news conference with GOP senato
Washington Post→ Meet the man flagged by Cassidy as paying $40,000 in health-care premiums
“There is a group called the strivers, the group making more money and work real hard. They work so much they don’t get a subsidy. There is a fellow back home with a special-needs child. He’s paid over $40,000 a year for his premiums.
Snopes→ Is Healthcare.gov Scheduled for Maintenance During Obamacare Enrollment?
News reports correctly describe the facts surrounding scheduled "Obamacare" web site downtime during November and December 2017.
Washington Post→ Sen. Cassidy’s misleading claim that preexisting-conditions ‘protection is absolutely the same’
“We protect those with preexisting conditions. … The protection is absolutely the same. There’s a specific provision that says that if a state applies for a waiver, it must ensure that those with preexisting conditions have af
Washington Post→ Sen. Cassidy’s rebuttal to Jimmy Kimmel: ‘More people will have coverage’
“I’m sorry he doesn’t understand. Under Graham-Cassidy-Heller-Johnson, more people will have coverage.” –Sen. Bill Cassidy (R-La.), interviewed on CNN’s “New Day,” Sept. 20, 2017 Late-night host Jimmy Kimmel atta
Snopes→ Did Donald Trump Cut Funding for Obamacare Enrollment Publicity?
Facebook warnings accurately describe a 90 percent budget cut for publicizing the shortened 2018 enrollment period for Obamacare.
Snopes→ Did John McCain’s Vote Stop the ACA Repeal for the 2017 Fiscal Year?
A theory spread online overstated the consequences of the Arizona senator's July 2017 vote to repeal the Affordable Care Act.
Snopes→ House Enacts ‘Martial Law’ as Senators Grapple With ‘Skinny’ Partial Obamacare Repeal
The rule allows the House to vote on the bill without notice if the Senate passes it.
Washington Post→ White House video misleads on CBO health-care estimates
“The Congressional Budget Office’s math doesn’t add up. Faulty Numbers = Faulty Results.” — Tweet by the White House Twitter account, July 12, 2017 The venerable Congressional Budget Office is under attack. Established in 1975 by
Washington Post→ No spending cuts to Medicaid? Then no tax cuts either
Washington politics often revolves around numbers. And no number is more important that the “baseline.” When politicians talk about “spending cuts” or “tax cuts,” they are measuring against a baseline. But it’s a process open
Washington Post→ Vice President Pence’s bushel of false and misleading claims about health care
Vice President Pence recently spoke at the National Governors Association meeting in Providence, R.I., and made several questionable claims about the Senate GOP health-care proposal, the Better Care Reconciliation Act (BCRA). When he gave
Washington Post→ McConnell’s claim that Senate GOP health bill would not ’cause anyone currently on Medicaid to come off it’
“Nothing we’ve advocated so far would cause anyone currently on Medicaid to come off of it.” — Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.), speech in Paducah, Ky., July 5. A reader asked us to fact-check this claim, repor
Washington Post→ Decoding the White House spin on Obamacare ‘failures’
As the Senate gears up to vote on the GOP bill to overhaul the Affordable Care Act, the White House has been publishing statistics to criticize the current health law. The White House published a “Repeal and Replace Obamacare” website, rife with n
Washington Post→ President Trump’s claim Medicaid spending in Senate health bill ‘actually goes up’
“Democrats purposely misstated Medicaid under new Senate bill — actually goes up.” — President Trump, in a tweet, June 28, 2017 The White House is defending changes to Medicaid financing in the Senate health-care overhaul bill by
Washington Post→ What you need to know about preexisting conditions in the Senate GOP health plan
“Important note for tomorrow: if GOP repeal bill ends essential benefits protection, it also ends preexisting conditions protection.” — Sen. Chris Murphy (D-Conn.), post on Twitter, June 21, 2017 “The bill’s defenders will say it repeals Ob
Washington Post→ Video: Two wrongs don’t make a right. The Republican spin on Obamacare premiums
Every now and then, we come across a claim that just doesn’t seem to go away — no matter how factually inaccurate or misleading. This iteration has to do with a pledge from then-candidate Barack Obama and nearly a decade’s worth of Republican att
Washington Post→ Trump’s claim about the ‘catastrophe’ of Obamacare premiums increasing 204 percent in Alaska
“In Alaska, they’ve gone up 207 percent on Obamacare. You know, I used to mention only Arizona because they were up 116 percent in Arizona. Now Arizona is like good by comparison to some of the numbers. But they’re way up in A
Snopes→ Did Nancy Pelosi Say Obamacare Must be Passed to ‘Find Out What Is in It’?
A partisan web site quotes the House Minority Leader selectively in order to create a false equivalence with the 2017 Republican health care plan.
Washington Post→ History Lesson: How the Democrats pushed Obamacare through the Senate
“Twenty-five days of consecutive session on a bill that was partisan in the sense that Republicans were angry with it, but we still had the courage of our convictions to have a debate on the floor.” — Senate Minority Leader Charles E. Schumer (D-
Snopes→ Was the Passage of Obamacare Was Just as Secretive as GOP Efforts to Repeal It?
While both bills could be faulted for periods of closed-door negotiations, experts agree that the secrecy behind the GOP bill to repeal Obamacare is in a league of its own.
Washington Post→ Pelosi’s claim that an estimated 1.8 million jobs will be lost through AHCA
“Americans will lose their health coverage because of his proposal. And it is a job loser. Estimated to be 1.8 million jobs lost. Donald Trump is a job loser.” — House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi, remarks to reporters. June 9, 2017 R
Washington Post→ Mitch McConnell on the health-care legislative process, 2010 vs. 2017
“Unfortunately, it will have to be a Republicans-only exercise. But we’re working hard to get there.” — Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.), in remarks to reporters June 13 It has become a regular feature of
Washington Post→ President Trump’s mangled ‘facts’ about Obamacare
“Americans were told that premiums would go down by $2,500 per year. And instead, their premiums went up to levels that nobody thought even possible.” “It was just announced yesterday that 2 million people have dropped out of Obamacar
Washington Post→ Planned Parenthood’s claim about birth control access for ’99 percent of sexually active women’
“99% of sexually active women have used birth control in their lifetime. Our lawmakers must hear from us. We won’t allow an extreme anti-woman agenda to undermine birth control access.” — Planned Parenthood Action Fund,
Snopes→ Senate Republicans Planning to Pass ‘Trumpcare’ While the United States Distracted by Comey Hearing?
Republicans are trying to bring health care legislation to a vote, but they aren't hiding their efforts from the public eye.
Washington Post→ Explaining the CBO’s vision of health-care catastrophe in the GOP plan
The new Congressional Budget Office report on the American Health Care Act, the House GOP replacement for Obamacare, demonstrates how difficult it is to craft a complex law that affects one-sixth of the U.S. economy. There are many variable
Washington Post→ Video: Health-care premiums will increase under the GOP health plan
Please watch the Fact Checker’s video explanation of how health-care premiums will increase over the next decade under either the Affordable Care Act or the House GOP replacement, the American Health Care Act. For more information, pl
Washington Post→ Fact-checking a rosy portrait of the American Health Care Act
“As a mom, rising health care costs are a big concern. My family lost our insurance and doctor because of the Affordable Care Act. But now, we have hope.” — California resident Elizabeth Jacinto, in an ad sponsored by the American Act
Washington Post→ Nancy Pelosi’s claim that ‘seven million veterans will lose their tax credit’ under the GOP health bill
“Seven million veterans will lose their tax credit for their families in this bill.” — House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.), remarks at the Center for American Progress “Ideas Conference,” May 16, 2017 While listi
Washington Post→ Health insurance premiums will keep going up, under either ACA or AHCA
“If we do nothing, premiums will go far, far, far higher than they would otherwise go up. . . . I think they’ll go down once this system comes into place.” — House Speaker Paul D. Ryan (R-Wis.), interview on CBS’s “Face the Nati
Washington Post→ Kamala D. Harris’s claim that 129 million people with preexisting conditions ‘could be denied coverage’
“Once again, 129M people with pre-existing conditions could be denied coverage and insurers could charge sick people more money.” — Sen. Kamala D. Harris (D-Calif.), in a tweet, May 4, 2017 As part of a tweet storm condemning the Hous
Washington Post→ Decoding HHS Secretary Price’s spin on the American Health Care Act
“The fact of the matter is that Medicaid spending under the proposal and under the budget goes up every single year.” “We have got 20 million folks out there across this land who have told the federal government, ‘Phooey
Washington Post→ No, the GOP health bill doesn’t classify rape or sexual assault as a preexisting condition
“Look at the smirks on their faces as they celebrate taking healthcare away from millions and declaring war on women. #AHCA These men just: Made being a rape survivor a pre-existing condition; Took away maternity care and infant car
Washington Post→ Kevin McCarthy’s claim that ‘nobody on Medicaid is going to be taken away’
“We’re not taking a benefit away. Nobody on Medicaid is going to be taken away.” — House Majority Leader Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.), interview on CNN, May 4 Before the House narrowly approved the Republican bi