President-elect Donald Trump says he may not pursue a full repeal of ObamaCare upon taking office.
{mosads}“Either Obamacare will be amended, or repealed and replaced,” Trump told the Wall Street Journal on Friday in his first interview since his stunning victory Tuesday.
Trump seemed more set on repealing and replacing the law in an interview with CBS’ “60 Minutes” set to air in full Sunday, and he said there wouldn’t be a lull period between the two.
“We’re going to do it simultaneously. It’ll be just fine. That’s what I do. I do a good job. You know, I mean, I know how to do this stuff,” he said. “We’re going to repeal it and replace it. And we’re not going to have, like, a two-day period and we’re not going to have a two-year period where there’s nothing. It will be repealed and replaced. I mean, you’ll know. And it’ll be great health care for much less money.”
Trump offered almost no details about his plans for President Obama’s signature healthcare law — one of the biggest open questions in Washington following the GOP’s sweep.
The president-elect said only that he planned to keep two of the law’s more popular provisions – protections for people with preexisting conditions and allowing young people to remain on their parents’ plans until age 26.
“I like those very much,” Trump told the Journal.
Both provisions have long been popular within the GOP, and are currently written into the healthcare reform plan drafted by House Speaker Paul Ryan last year.
Trump reiterated that he plans to keep those two aspects of ObamaCare in his “60 Minutes” interview, calling the preexisting conditions provision “one of the strongest assets.”
And on allowing young people to stay on their parents’ plans he said: “It adds cost, but it’s very much something we’re going to try and keep.”
The more surprising part about Trump’s interview is the marked shift in his tone from his campaign speeches, when he blasted the healthcare law as “a disaster,” “a total catastrophe,” a “horror” and “a big, fat, horrible lie.”
Trump told the Journal he is open to keeping parts of ObamaCare after a pitch from the current president during their meeting at the White House on Thursday.
“I told him I will look at his suggestions, and out of respect, I will do that,” Trump told the WSJ.
Walking back Trump’s promise of a full repeal of ObamaCare could become a major frustration for his supporters and the GOP as a whole.
This year’s election marks the first time in six years that Republicans have a realistic shot at dismantling the law.
Trump’s campaign speeches and materials have promised “a full repeal” of the law.
“Obamacare. We’re going to repel it, we’re going to replace it, get something great. Repeal it, replace it, get something great!” Trump yelled at a rally last year.
But some Republicans have also acknowledged that it would be tougher than Trump has let on to eliminate the law entirely – both politically and legislatively.
More than 20 million people receive healthcare through the law, and billions of dollars in subsidies are at stake.
Updated at 7:07 p.m.