Part of the Obamacare program is to provide grants to non-profit organizations to help people obtain coverage for health insurance under the Affordable Care Act.  They are called Navigators, which I think, given the complexities of health insurance, is a wonderful name.   Their budget was slashed in 2017, after Trump was elected from 63 million to 36 million dollars.  Now only 10 million dollars will be budgeted.

It gets worse.  The navigators will help people get insurance plans which are not at all compliant with the Affordable Care Act.  The navigators should inform consumers of other options, like “association health plan” and short term, limited duration insurance  lacking in standard health services like preventative services and prescription drug coverage.

Democrat Senator Ron Wyden got it right when he stated, “This move amounts to federally funded fraud – paying groups to sell unsuspecting Americans on junk plans.”

One last element is guaranteed to open the door wide open to fraud.  The Navigator groups are not required to have a physical presence in the areas where they operate.  This means it’s going to be on internet, and over chat sessions.   It’s going to be bad.  Ron Wyden says Trump is on a sabotage crusade to wreck the Affordable Care Act.  That’s exactly right.

Stay tuned,

Dave