Today, new reporting from NPR reveals Donald Trump and Republicans’ plans to attack health care access and government programs that reduce medical debt – including Biden administration-led initiatives from the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau. Trump has wasted no time stuffing his Cabinet full of more billionaires than any other administration in history, and now his same wealthy flunkeys are plotting to cut vital programs proven to reduce medical debt and lower health care costs.

Key Point: “Trump and congressional Republicans have signaled their intent to roll back federal subsidies passed under Biden that make health plans purchased on ACA marketplaces more affordable. That could hike annual premiums by hundreds or even thousands of dollars for many enrollees, according to estimates by the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities, a think tank.”

NPR: The fight against medical debt is pivoting to the states after Trump’s election

By: Noam Levey

• Worried that President-elect Donald Trump will curtail federal efforts to take on the nation’s medical debt problem, patient and consumer advocates are looking to states to help people who can’t afford their medical bills or pay down their debts.

• President Biden’s administration has proved to be an ally in state efforts to control health care debt. Such debt burdens 100 million people in the United States, an NPR and KFF Health News investigation found.

• Led by Biden appointee Rohit Chopra, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau has made medical debt a priority, going after aggressive collectors and exposing problematic practices across the medical debt industry. Earlier this year, the agency proposed landmark regulations to remove medical bills from consumer credit scores.

• Elon Musk, the billionaire whom Trump has tapped to lead his initiative to shrink government, last week called for the elimination of the watchdog agency. “Delete CFPB,” Musk posted on X.

• Under the Biden administration, the CFPB has been investigating patient financing companies amid warnings that many people may not understand that signing up for a medical credit card such as CareCredit or enrolling in a payment plan through a financial services company can pile on more debt.

• Trump and congressional Republicans have signaled their intent to roll back federal subsidies passed under Biden that make health plans purchased on ACA marketplaces more affordable. That could hike annual premiums by hundreds or even thousands of dollars for many enrollees, according to estimates by the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities, a think tank.

• And during Trump’s first term, he backed efforts in Republican-led states to restrict enrollment in their Medicaid safety net programs through rules that would require people to work in order to receive benefits. GOP state leaders in Idaho, Louisiana, and other states have expressed a desire to renew such efforts.

• “That’s all a recipe for more medical debt,” said Stahl, of Undue Medical Debt.

• Jessica Altman, who heads the Covered California insurance marketplace, warned that federal cuts will imperil initiatives in her state that have limited copays and deductibles and curtailed debt for many state residents.

• “States like California that have invested in critical affordable programs for our residents will face tough decisions,” she said.