More than four in 10 Republicans think President Trump repealed Obamacare, even though much of the 2010 law remains intact after GOP efforts to repeal and replace it fell short this past year, according to a new poll.
Mr. Trump recently said he “essentially” repealed the Affordable Care Act by using the GOP tax overhaul to get rid of the “individual mandate” that requires Americans to either hold health insurance or pay a tax.
But the law’s taxpayer-funded subsidies, vast expansion of Medicaid and consumer protections are still in place, so few conservatives would share Mr. Trump’s assessment.
Even so, an Economist/YouGov poll says 44 percent of those who identified as Republican think Mr. Trump has, in fact, repealed Obamacare.
Democrats and independents — at 27 percent each — were less likely to say Mr. Trump scrapped the law.
The House passed a bill in May to replace Obamacare, though the push fell apart in the Senate last summer, as three Republicans and every Democrat voted against a bill that would keep the effort alive.
In a recent tweet, Mr. Trump predicted that Democrats and Republicans would eventually come together to develop a better health program, though it’s unclear when or how that would happen, as Congress enters a bitter mid-term election year.
For now, the Economist/YouGov poll says 31 percent of Americans already think Mr. Trump repealed Obamacare, 49 percent do not and 21 percent weren’t sure if he did or not.
• Tom Howell Jr. can be reached at thowell@washingtontimes.com.
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