Although Bowling Green residents may not currently be experiencing the effects of President Trump’s crusade against Obamacare, it is important to understand the possible outcomes, according to local experts.

On March 23, legislation to repeal the Affordable Care Act was intended to go to the House floor for debate, but as GOP members failed to unify in their support for the proposal, House Republican leaders pulled it from consideration.

Later that same day, House Speaker Paul Ryan announced that Obamacare is here to stay “for the foreseeable future,” according to a New York Times article.

“The bill was pulled because people do not want their coverage reduced,” said Bowling Green City Council member Bruce Jeffers. “It was theoretical to say that Obamacare harmed people, at least to a greater extent. When the actual cuts to that care were visible, people realized they would lose valuable coverage.”

Jeffers went on to predict what the president’s next move will be in terms of healthcare legislation.

“He will make changes,” Jeffers said. “He will probably try to combine a tax plan with health care credits, a scheme to lower taxes for certain groups of people.”

Trump is also likely to “reduce the mandate penalty,” making it possible for young people in relatively good health to live without insurance, said Jeffers.

Health Economics professor Dr. Amanda Cook explained why the mandate is a necessary component of the ACA, and said it reduces the number of people who are uninsured, which is beneficial.

“When we reduce the number of uninsured individuals going to the hospital, it means the hospital doesn’t need to mark up its prices to privately insured individuals to ‘make up’ for the uninsured,” she said.

It is possible Trump may also continue attempts to reduce access to reproductive health care, said Jeffers.

But what could Bowling Green residents reasonably expect if the ACA was eventually repealed?

According to Jeffers, the outcome would be likely to place beneficiaries “in a worse position than before Obamacare was started.”

“I would expect health prices to go up, as hospitals and doctors increase prices to ‘cover’ the costs of the uninsured patients they treat,” Cook said.

While many University students are likely to still be listed on their parents’ plans and may not care about the war on Obamacare, Cook emphasized the importance of paying attention to what is currently going on in the world of healthcare, especially for young people.

“One of the most important aspects of the ACA from a health perspective is that individuals couldn’t be excluded from health coverage because they had gotten sick in the past (or have) a pre-existing condition,” Cook said. “It is easy to think you will never get sick, get injured or get really unlucky and find out you have a major health issue, but keeping this provision of the ACA is really important for someone you know.”

Another reason for people in their 20s to care about what happens to the ACA is that under its provisions, children can stay on their parents’ plans until they are 26, said Cook.

“It can be difficult to get an early career position with a good benefit package, and this extra flexibility of staying on a parent’s plan keeps you covered,” Cook said. “It’s nice to know as you are leaving college, probably with debt, that you won’t face financial ruin if you have a bad health event.”

If the ACA was repealed, these benefits would be repealed with it, which could adversely affect young people.