Covered California is the only place where an individual can learn about and use federal financial assistance that can help reduce health care costs.
California stands to lose $20.5 billion a year in Obamacare funding — $15.5 billion for Medi-Cal and $5 billion in Covered California subsidies.
California’s programs won’t be gone overnight. Despite campaign promises to the contrary, it is virtually impossible to repeal Obamacare on day one of the Trump administration. The Senate filibuster rule, which requires 60 votes to move legislation forward, provides Democrats with a mechanism to block a complete repeal effort. And there would be an enormous backlash against an immediate, abrupt repeal. More than 20 million Americans are newly insured under Obamacare, and many congressional leaders, including House Speaker Paul D. Ryan, understand the very real political costs of throwing them under the bus. So Obamacare is likely to continue through the end of 2017, and perhaps 2018.
Since the election, Trump has emphasized maintaining at least two popular features of Obamacare — allowing children to stay on their parents’ policies up to age 26, and requiring insurers to offer insurance to those with pre-existing conditions without higher premiums. (There’s a caveat — premiums will go up if you aren’t continuously covered.)
Covered California is the place where Californians can get brand-name health insurance under the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act.