WSJ: Trump Counties Among Those That Have Benefited Most From Obamacare

A Wall Street Journal analysis of counties that have seen the biggest coverage gains under the Affordable Care Act found that those that supported Donald Trump were among those that benefited most.

Using Gallup data alongside the county typology from the American Communities Project, the Journal zeroed in on the eight county types where the level of insurance coverage had seen a bigger increase than the national levels.

“Six of those types — representing about 77 million people or 33 million votes, a quarter of the total cast — sided with Mr. Trump, some by very large margins,” the Journal said.

Native American lands, which supported Trump by a 5 percent margin, saw a 14.8 percent increase in their insured, according to the Journal, compared to a 3.9 percent national average increase in insured. Working class country saw a 6.8 percent increase, while supporting Trump overwhelmingly, by a 46 percent margin. The other Trump supporting communities where coverage increased above the national average were “graying American,” rural middle America, African American South and evangelical hubs.

The report comes as congressional Republicans have said they intend to move quickly in the new Congress next month to repeal Obamacare. The incoming Trump administration has signaled it wants to sign a repeal bill soon after his Inauguration, according to reports.

“If Mr. Trump keeps his campaign promise to scrap and replace the ACA, communities that gave him some of his biggest margins would likely see the biggest impact,” the Journal said. “That reality may be behind Mr. Trump’s expressed interest in holding onto at least parts of the law, particularly provisions that bar insurers from denying insurance on the basis of preexisting conditions and which allow people to keep their older children on parents’ plans.”