Pence Clarifies What Trump Meant When He Said ‘Insurance For Everybody’

Vice President-elect Mike Pence walks through the halls of Russell Senate Office Building on Capitol Hill in Washington, Tuesday, Jan. 17, 2017. (AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster)
Start your day with TPM.
Sign up for the Morning Memo newsletter

Vice President-elect Mike Pence took the liberty on CNN Wednesday of clarifying what Donald Trump really meant when he said in a Washington Post interview that he wanted to see “insurance for everybody.”

“I think it means making insurance affordable for everyone, but also allowing for the kinds of reforms in Medicaid on a state-by-state basis that will ensure — that will make sure that we have health care coverage for the most vulnerable in our society,” Pence said, according to a report from CNN.

Pence’s clarification came after Trump’s comments startled some Capitol Hill Republicans who feared Trump was making promises that the party could not deliver on in a replacement plan.

During the CNN interview, Pence also clarified that the Trump administration was still working on a replacement to the Affordable Care Act, but that it would be done soon.

“We’re getting very close. We expect to have that plan come forward in the early days of the administration,” Pence told CNN.

When it comes to a replacement to Obamacare, there is not yet a consensus among Republicans on how to proceed. There are several plans floating around, including House Speaker Paul Ryan’s Better Way and Trump Health and Human Services pick Tom Price’s proposal, but Pence’s comments suggest the Trump administration has its own ideas of how to replace Obamacare.

Latest Livewire
Comments
Masthead Masthead
Founder & Editor-in-Chief:
Executive Editor:
Managing Editor:
Associate Editor:
Editor at Large:
General Counsel:
Publisher:
Head of Product:
Director of Technology:
Associate Publisher:
Front End Developer:
Senior Designer: