Tax reform bill overturns ACA's individual mandate

On December 20, both houses of the U.S. Congress passed tax legislation that included the overturning of the Affordable Care Act's (ACA) individual mandate provision that requires individuals to purchase health insurance.

HR 1 adds to the deficit by $1 trillion, the Congressional Budget Office (CBO) and the Joint Committee on Taxation (JCT) said, which could prompt cuts to programs such as Medicare of up to $25 billion per year in response to deficit increases, according to a Politico report.

Professional organizations such as the American College of Physicians (ACP) registered concern immediately after the bill passed.

"The ACP is deeply concerned that the repeal of the ACA's individual mandate that is included in the tax reform legislation that Congress just passed will cause tens of millions of Americans to lose health insurance coverage," President Dr. Jack Ende said in a statement. "The repeal will also cause premiums to rise sharply and insurers to pull out of the health insurance marketplaces."

But House Speaker Paul Ryan (R-WI) said the bill will give Americans immediate relief.

"After years of work, we are going to enact the most sweeping, pro-growth overhaul of our tax code in a generation," Ryan said in a statement. "Americans are going to see relief almost immediately in the form of bigger paychecks and lower taxes."

HR 1 now goes to President Trump for his signature.