Chicago And Other Cities Are Trying To Shut Down Trump’s War Against Obamacare

The fight to preserve the Affordable Care Act has heated up. Four cities collectively filed a lawsuit Thursday against Trump over “waging a relentless campaign to sabotage and, ultimately, to nullify” the ACA, also known as Obamacare.

Citizens in Chicago and Baltimore, along with those in the Ohio cities of Columbus and Cincinnati, have referred to Trump’s relentless actions in trying to repeal the ACA as illegal, Think Progress reported. The president, who been criticized in pushing his own brand of of healthcare reform dubbed Trumpcare, has forced Americans out of the ACA marketplace and increased the number of uninsured people, the suit said. Healthcare premiums have also risen, and cities have had to spend more on “uncompensated” care for their residents, city officials said.

Additionally, officials in the cities named in the suit believe the Trump administration’s actions are unconstitutional in not “faithfully executing” the ACA. They are demanding that the administration fully fund ACA advertising, lengthen healthcare enrollment periods and enforce individual mandates, which requires people to have at least a minimum level of coverage.

The Affordable Care Act has been under assault by the Trump administration for more than a year. The administration has unsuccessfully tried to repeal and replace the law several times; however, officials have found ways to go after and challenge certain provisions under the act.

Twenty GOP state attorneys general and governors filed a lawsuit that brought the constitutionality of the ACA into question in February. Attorney General Jeff Sessions and the Department of Justice backed the Republicans and denounced important protections under the ACA, including those for people with preexisting conditions. The lawsuit will take time to work through the court system but it stands as a stumbling block to preserve Obama-era healthcare protections for vulnerable populations, Kaiser Health News reported.

Trump and company’s piecemeal efforts are also alarming in that they are chipping away at Obamacare until the law is essentially rendered useless.

Officials in the several cities who filed Thursday’s lawsuit refuse to sit around and let Trump and his crew get away with attacking Obamacare. They are fighting for the fundamental rights of all people to have proper healthcare — and not backing down until the work is done.

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