Washington – President Biden on Thursday signed a series of health care-related directives that he described as reversing “the damage” caused by former President Donald Trump, which included actions to rescind and direct anti-abortion rules.
“I am not initiating any new law, any new aspect of the law,” Biden said in brief comments from the Oval Office.
The president said he “restores the Affordable Care Act and restores Medicaid as it was before Trump became president, which fiat changed, made it more inaccessible, more expensive, and harder for people to qualify for. to either of these two articles. “
Mr. Biden’s executive order allows HealthCare.gov, the federal health insurance market, to open for a special enrollment period from Feb. 15 to May 15, which will allow Americans to have more time. to subscribe to health insurance coverage. The order also directs federal agencies to review rules and policies to ensure they do not hinder Americans’ access to health care, such as those that may reduce health coverage or weaken health care protections. Affordable Care Act for people with pre-existing conditions.
Evan Vucci / AP
Biden also issued a presidential memorandum dissociating the Mexico City Policy, known as the global gag rule, that prohibits U.S. dollars from flowing into international non-governmental organizations that offer abortions, advocate for the legalization, and expansion of access to abortion or abortion counseling.
The rule dates back to 1984, under President Ronald Reagan, but has been revoked and reinstated by the Democratic and Republican administrations, respectively. Former Presidents Bill Clinton and Barack Obama rescinded the policy, while Mr. Trump recreated and expanded it.
The Biden Memorandum also orders the Department of Health and Human Services to review the possibility of dismantling a similar policy in the United States that prohibits Title X money from going to health care centers that provide abortion services.
The president, who was vice president when Obamacare was enacted, vowed during his presidential campaign to protect and expand the 2010 health care law, as a group of Republican states and the Trump administration fought to kill Obamacare in a case pending before the Supreme Court. Mr Biden stressed that the coronavirus pandemic highlights the need for access to healthcare.