President Biden takes officeExBulletin

President Biden will sign two executive actions on Thursday aimed at increasing access to reproductive health care and health insurance through the Affordable Care Act and Medicaid.

The Presidential Memorandum directs the Department of Health and Human Services to open a special registration period for affordable care laws through HealthCare.gov, a federal health insurance market. The registration period is from February 15th to May 15th, giving Americans who have lost their employer-based health insurance due to a pandemic the opportunity to take out insurance.

“For President Biden, this is personal,” the news release read. “As we continue to fight COVID-19, it becomes even more important for Americans to have meaningful access to affordable care.”

Biden also orders federal agencies to review current policies that could undermine the Affordable Care Act and the health insurance exchanges created under it. He will also demand a policy review that can make it more difficult for Americans to register for Medicaid.

His second order aims to “protect and expand access to comprehensive reproductive health care” by withdrawing the Mexico City Policy, also known as the “Global Gag Rule.” This policy has been revived and expanded by the Trump administration and prohibits international non-governmental organizations that provide abortion counseling or referrals from receiving US funding.

Affordable care method

Biden’s enforcement actions will cancel some of the Trump administration’s efforts to undermine the ACA.

Last November, the Trump administration and several Republican-led states claimed In the United States Supreme Court The program should be revoked and it will eliminate general elements of law such as protection for people with existing conditions.

The Supreme Court will hear proceedings that may determine the legality of Medicaid recipients’ working requirements. The Trump administration has granted a waiver to grant Medicaid’s working requirements to 12 states, but not all have been granted and some have been blocked by lower courts.

Biden has reversed the course and has instructed federal agencies to rethink their working requirements rules. He also urges institutions to consider policies that undermine the protection of people with existing conditions, including COVID-19-related complications.

The Trump White House also refused to promote ACA as an option for millions of Americans who lost their jobs and health insurance during the pandemic. The administration faced pressure to open HealthCare.gov to enroll anyone in an affordable care law in response to the coronavirus, but never.

Global gag rules

For decades, Democratic and Republican presidents have alternately withdrawn or revived global gag rules in opposition to policy by Democrats such as Biden. Republicans argued that this rule would reduce the number of abortions.

However, Study published last year He suggested that the policy failed to reduce the rate of abortion and ultimately had the opposite effect. According to the survey, the rate of abortion increased by about 40% in the countries surveyed. This is probably because the ban on funding has reduced access to contraception, resulting in an increase in unwanted pregnancies.

Under action scheduled to be announced Thursday, the president will instruct federal agencies to consider restricted Trump era rules. Title X Federal Fund It covers family planning and reproductive health services for low-income patients. Under this program, organizations that promoted or provided abortion did not have access to these federal funds.

“People, especially women, blacks, indigenous peoples and other people of color, LGBTQ + people, and low-income earners are denied access to reproductive health care throughout the country and around the world,” the White House said. Said.