Editorial Board
The Individual Mandate Would Be a Big Loss
A blow to Obamacare is one more reason not to like the Republican tax bill.
She should see the problem.
Photographer: Alex Wong/Getty ImagesIn its failure to repeal Obamacare this fall, Congress should have learned a simple lesson: Americans want the government to see that everyone has health insurance. Instead, the Republican majority tirelessly insists on moving in the opposite direction. Thus, their shambles of a tax bill repeals Obamacare's requirement that everyone have health insurance.
This change would cause some 13 million fewer people to have insurance by 2026. While that's less than the 22 million to 23 million who would have lost insurance had Obamacare itself been repealed, it's a giant backward stride.