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Our only agenda is to publish the truth so you can be an informed participant in democracy. We need your help. More Info ### I would like to contribute One Time Monthly Yearly Join Now ![](\\" ![](\\" Donald Trump stated on February 4, 2020 in his State of the Union address to Congress: \"Our new (health care) plans are up to 60% less expensive and better\" than Obamacare. ![\\"true\\"](\\" mostly-false/6a6ef6075c162fdccf5eb960e683dcd1.jpg.\\") ![\\"barely- true\\"](\\" false.jpg\\") * Health Care * Health Check * Donald Trump ![\\"President](\\" President Donald Trump delivers his State of the Union address to a joint session of Congress on Capitol Hill in Washington on Feb. 4, 2020, as Vice President Mike Pence and House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., watch. (AP) ![\\"Julie](\\" By Julie Appleby February 10, 2020 # Better than other plans or better than nothing? Trump’s claim about ‘affordable’ options In his wide-ranging State of the Union address, President Donald Trump returned to a favorite theme: the cost of health insurance. He cited the high cost of premiums for people who buy their coverage through the Affordable Care Act marketplaces and said his administration has provided new, less costly coverage. \"I moved quickly to provide affordable alternatives. Our new plans are up to 60% less expensive and better,\" Trump told the lawmakers gathered at the Capitol. So we wondered, to which new alternatives was he referring? We reached out to the White House to ask. Spokesperson Adam Kennedy responded that the president was talking about short-term, limited-duration plans. But that got us thinking: Are they really less expensive and better? Or simply better than nothing? First, are they new? They are not. As background, short-term insurance plans have been around for decades in various iterations and are generally considered a stopgap solution for people between jobs or attending school. They provide some protections, usually paying a percentage of hospital and doctor bills after the policyholder meets a deductible. But they’ve always been a bit controversial. Unlike the ACA plans now available, short-term plans can bar people with health conditions from enrolling or exclude coverage for specific conditions or treatments. They also offer fewer benefits — meaning they are not required to comply with the health law’s mandated essential benefits requirement. So, for example, they don’t have to cover prescription drugs, or mental health services or substance abuse treatment — and many don’t. In addition, they can set annual or lifetime caps on benefits. Almost all exclude maternity care. If a person develops a health condition during the coverage term, insurers can look through their medical records and, in some cases, retroactively cancel the plans — or refuse to renew the coverage at the end of the policy’s term. The Obama administration restricted these policies, which still cannot be sold on the ACA marketplaces and do not qualify for subsidies, to a maximum coverage period of 90 days, down from the 364 days that applied previously. The Trump administration reversed that time-limit restriction in 2018 and built on it by allowing insurers to offer policies renewable for up to three years. Officials, including Health and Human Services Secretary Alex Azar, said at the time that these short-term plans provide an alternative but aren’t a good fit for everyone. For instance, the Trump rules require the policies to carry a warning that they aren’t \"required to comply with federal requirements for health insurance.\" They also state that consumers should \"check the policy carefully to make sure you understand what the policy does and doesn’t cover.\" Are these plans less expensive? The White House pointed us toward a January 2019 report produced by the Congressional Budget Office and the Joint Committee on Taxation as the source for the president’s assertion that these plans are 60% less expensive. It quickly becomes clear that the analysis is very wonky and complex. After all, it’s not easy to project what benefits insurers will include in short-term plans or what they will charge individuals, which can vary based on their health. Even the analysts called the estimating process \"challenging.\" When it came right down to it, they hedged: Short-term plans are likely cheaper than the lowest-cost ACA plan for some consumers, but more expensive for others. For example, people who get a federal tax credit to buy ACA- compliant insurance or those who are older or less healthy would likely pay more in premiums for a traditional short-term plan, the analysts said. #### Featured Fact-check ![](\\" ![](\\" JD Vance stated on September 15, 2024 in a \"Meet the Press\" interview Former President Donald Trump could have destroyed the Affordable Care Act, but “he chose to build upon (it).\" ![\\"true\\"](\\" false/33efdb6633e5e2fdc2d4e2f63383a1e0.jpg.\\") ![\\"false\\"](\\" false.jpg\\") By Julie Appleby • September 20, 2024 Conversely, those without subsidies, especially younger or healthier consumers, might pay as much as 60% less than they would for the lowest-cost plan through the ACA, the analysis concluded. Another study, not cited by the White House but done by the conservative Manhattan Institute, also listed caveats, but more robustly defended the plans as less expensive. Premiums for short-term plans are lower — in some cases, almost half the cost — of ACA plans, it concluded. But critics put these price tags in context. \"I don’t have a reason to suspect the 60% is wrong if they’re lining them up against ACA plans, but if you’re a health plan that doesn’t cover much, it’s easy enough to offer a cheap premium,\" said Sabrina Corlette, research professor and co-director of the Center on Health Insurance Reforms at Georgetown University. So that gets to the question, are they better? The consensus is that the coverage short-term plans provide is not better than that of ACA plans. But it could be better than going without insurance entirely. \"Why not throw another option out there?\" said Doug Badger, senior fellow at the conservative Galen Institute. \"You might say this plan isn’t as good as that plan, but we may both agree that having this one is better than nothing.\" He said that should be a decision made by consumers, who can weigh the pros and cons: \"They know their circumstances and risk tolerance.\". Still, it’s a gamble, as no one knows what health conditions might befall them. A plan that doesn’t cover prescription drugs may be fine the first month, but if a serious illness crops up, it suddenly has unexpected costs. Others also note that short-term plans may have wider networks of doctors and hospitals than some ACA plans, giving consumers more options. \"In Texas, for example, you cannot buy an ACA plan that covers MD Anderson,\" the cancer center of the University of Texas, said Brian Blase, CEO of Blase Policy Strategies. Blase has advised Trump on his health policy efforts. \"The only way you can have such a plan that includes MD Anderson — unless you have employer coverage — is in a short-term plan.\" Again, nice to have a wide network. But there’s a conundrum. Someone with cancer — attracted to a network because it includes MD Anderson — would be rejected by most short-term plans. That ability to reject applicants — or seriously limit coverage of their preexisting conditions — helps keep premiums down. But those are also the main reasons experts say the plans are not better than those offered under the ACA, which bars such limits. A preexisting condition is often defined as anything treated — or for which a \"prudent person\" should have sought treatment — during the previous 12 months to five years, depending on the insurer. \"If you have high blood pressure and, while on one of these plans, you have a heart attack, the plan could say that was a preexisting condition,\" said Corlette. State regulation of such plans varies widely, as do the coverage benefits and limits offered by various insurers. Some have limits listed in the fine print. While short-term plans have been embraced by regulators in some states, nearly half of all states have moved to limit them to less than 12 months. Four — California, Massachusetts, New Jersey and New York — have barred them altogether. Those states cite concerns about the effect on ACA premiums and the risk that consumers could be left hanging by the more limited nature of the short-term plans. Our ruling Trump said these are new plans that are 60% cheaper and better. But short-terms plans are not a new idea. Just how much cheaper they are depends on a lot of factors, experts told us. And it’s very hard to examine them in an apples-to-apples comparison with ACA plans, which cover far more and are required to accept all applicants. Given the limitations of short-term plans, they’re not better than ACA plans for most people, because policyholders could face potentially significant financial risk — or find their treatment needs are not covered. They’re definitely not better for people who qualify for federal subsidies to buy ACA insurance, especially those at the lower end of that income range, where the subsidies are larger. That said, a short-term plan may be better than going without coverage at all, particularly for a young or otherwise healthy person, whose income is above subsidy limits. We rate this claim as Mostly False. #### Read About Our Process The Principles of the Truth-O-Meter ### Our Sources Email response from Adam Kennedy, spokesperson, Executive Office of the President, Feb. 5, 2020. Telephone interview with Sabrina Corlette, research professor and co-director of the Center on Health Insurance Reforms at Georgetown University, Feb. 5, 2020. Telephone interview with Tom Miller, resident fellow at the American Enterprise Institute, Feb. 5, 2020. Telephone interview with Brian Blase, CEO of Blase Policy Strategies, Feb. 5, 2020. Telephone interview with Doug Badger, senior fellow at the Galen Institute, Feb. 5, 2020. Congressional Budget Office, \"How CBO and JCT Analyzed Coverage Effects of New Rules for Association Health Plans and Short-Term Plans,\" January 2019. Kaiser Health News, \"Trump Administration Loosens Restrictions On Short-Term Health Plans,\" Aug. 1, 2018. Federal Register, \"Short-Term, Limited-Duration Insurance,\" Aug. 3, 2018. Commonwealth Fund, \"States Step Up to Protect Insurance Markets and Consumers from Short-Term Health Plans,\" May 2, 2019. FierceHealthcare, \"Azar touts agency progress on growing insurance options,\" Feb. 28, 2019. Manhattan Institute, \"Renewable Term Health Insurance: Better Coverage Than Obamacare,\" May 16, 2019. Commonwealth Fund, \"Short Term Health Plan Gaps and Limits Leave People at Risk,\" Oct. 20, 2018. ## Browse the Truth-O-Meter ### More by Julie Appleby ![](\\" ![](\\" JD Vance stated on September 15, 2024 in a \"Meet the Press\" interview: Former President Donald Trump could have destroyed the Affordable Care Act, but “he chose to build upon (it).\" ![\\"false\\"](\\" ![\\"false\\"](\\" By Julie Appleby • September 20, 2024 ![](\\" ![](\\" Al Franken stated on May 17, 2023 in a tweet: \"Americans will get $1.1 B in rebates from health insurance companies this year cuz of a provision I wrote in the ACA.” ![\\"mostly-true\\"](\\" th.jpg\\") ![\\"mostly-true\\"](\\" mostly-true.jpg\\") By Julie Appleby • June 5, 2023 ![](\\" ![](\\" Power to the Patients stated on April 19, 2022 in a television ad: About a federal hospital price transparency requirement, “Nobody’s enforcing that law.” ![\\"half-true\\"](\\" th.jpg\\") ![\\"half-true\\"](\\" true.jpg\\") By Julie Appleby • August 9, 2022 ![](\\" logo/a94f4e74532f6298ede173b3d19d08cc.jpg\\") ![](\\" logo/d22255b683f952c5ca292d272e79fbbd.jpg\\") Community Oncology Alliance stated on November 29, 2021 in a radio ad: \"An independent analysis shows that payments for cancer care will be slashed by close to 45% causing cancer clinics to close and massively raising your healthcare costs.” ![\\"half-true\\"](\\" th.jpg\\") ![\\"half-true\\"](\\" true.jpg\\") By Julie Appleby • December 7, 2021 ![](\\" ![](\\" Facebook posts stated on April 19, 2021 in social media posts: “For #Covid vaccines, shingles and even more dangerous and painful skin conditions may be the new thrombocytopenia.\" ![\\"barely-true\\"](\\" th.jpg\\") ![\\"barely-true\\"](\\" barely-true.jpg\\") By Julie Appleby • April 29, 2021 ![](\\" ![](\\" Rand Paul stated on March 21, 2021 in a tweet: “Sorry Dr Fauci and other fearmongers, new study shows vaccines and naturally acquired immunity DO effectively neutralize COVID variants.” ![\\"half-true\\"](\\" th.jpg\\") ![\\"half-true\\"](\\" true.jpg\\") By Julie Appleby • March 26, 2021 ![](\\" ![](\\" Donald Trump stated on September 24, 2020 in an executive order: “For example, when the COVID-19 pandemic hit, my Administration implemented a program to provide any individual without health-insurance coverage access to necessary COVID‑19‑related testing and treatment.” ![\\"mostly-true\\"](\\" th.jpg\\") ![\\"mostly-true\\"](\\" mostly-true.jpg\\") By Julie Appleby • October 1, 2020 ![](\\" ![](\\" Cory Gardner stated on September 15, 2020 in a tweet: Says he authored legislation “to guarantee coverage to people with pre- existing conditions -- no matter what happens to Obamacare.” ![\\"false\\"](\\" ![\\"false\\"](\\" By Julie Appleby • September 18, 2020 ![](\\" ![](\\" Ryan Holets stated on August 25, 2020 in in a speech at the Republican National Convention: “Drug overdose deaths decreased in 2018 for the first time in 30 years.” ![\\"mostly-true\\"](\\" th.jpg\\") ![\\"mostly-true\\"](\\" mostly-true.jpg\\") By Julie Appleby • August 27, 2020 ![](\\" ![](\\" Brett Giroir stated on July 26, 2020 in an appearance on CNN’s “State of the Union”: “Five veterinary labs have their CLIA certification to officially test human patients. There are a lot of labs who are doing surveillance testing that don\'t need the CLIA certification.” ![\\"mostly-true\\"](\\" th.jpg\\") ![\\"mostly-true\\"](\\" mostly-true.jpg\\") By Julie Appleby • August 4, 2020 ![](\\" ![](\\" Mike Pence stated on March 4, 2020 in in a press briefing: “With regard to the cost, let me be very clear: HHS has designated the coronavirus test as an essential health benefit. That means, by definition, it\'s covered in the private health insurance of every American, as well as covered by Medicare and Medicaid.\" ![\\"half-true\\"](\\" th.jpg\\") ![\\"half-true\\"](\\" true.jpg\\") By Julie Appleby • March 6, 2020 ![](\\" ![](\\" Donald Trump stated on February 4, 2020 in his State of the Union address to Congress: \"Our new (health care) plans are up to 60% less expensive and better\" than Obamacare. ![\\"barely-true\\"](\\" th.jpg\\") ![\\"barely-true\\"](\\" barely-true.jpg\\") By Julie Appleby • February 10, 2020 ![](\\" bloggers/ebe00c0612038819cb747e005efe24fb.jpg\\") ![](\\" bloggers/4cffbe2308dbd9f6b736d845d36a1ba4.jpg\\") Christy Harrison stated on August 26, 2019 in a recent New York Times column: \"We have a host of issues associated with high B.M.I.s. But correlation doesn’t prove causation, and there’s a significant body of research showing that weight stigma and weight cycling can explain most if not all of the associations we see between higher weights and poor health outcomes.\" ![\\"barely-true\\"](\\" th.jpg\\") ![\\"barely-true\\"](\\" barely-true.jpg\\") By Julie Appleby • September 17, 2019 ![](\\" ![](\\" Amy Klobuchar stated on July 15, 2019 in comments made at an AARP-sponsored Democratic presidential primary candidate forum: \"There are, literally, two pharmaceutical lobbyists for every member of Congress.\" ![\\"mostly-true\\"](\\" th.jpg\\") ![\\"mostly-true\\"](\\" mostly-true.jpg\\") By Julie Appleby • July 26, 2019 ### Better than other plans or better than nothing? Trump’s claim about ‘affordable’ options * ![](\\" ![](\\" TikTok posts stated on September 22, 2024 in una publicación enTikTok: En el sur de Filadelfia, la campaña de Kamala Harris “está pagando a la gente $700 por semana para viajar y asistir a todos sus eventos”. ![\\"false\\"](\\" ![\\"false\\"](\\" By Maria Briceño • September 27, 2024 * ![](\\" ![](\\" Instagram posts stated on September 25, 2024 in an Instagram post: Hurricane Helene was the product of intentional weather modification. ![\\"pants-fire\\"](\\" th.jpg\\") ![\\"pants-fire\\"](\\" pants-fire.jpg\\") By Loreben Tuquero • September 27, 2024 * ![](\\" ![](\\" Instagram posts stated on September 25, 2024 in a post: Video shows footage of Hurricane Helene ![\\"false\\"](\\" ![\\"false\\"](\\" By Grace Abels • September 27, 2024 * ![](\\" ![](\\" Vote No on 3 stated on September 7, 2024 in a TV ad: Florida’s Amendment 3 is “the monopoly amendment.” ![\\"false\\"](\\" ![\\"false\\"](\\" By Samantha Putterman • September 27, 2024 * ![](\\" ![](\\" Jared Moskowitz stated on September 19, 2024 in una audiencia en la Cámara de Representantes: “El Proyecto 2025 quiere deshacerse de la NOAA” y del Servicio Nacional de Meteorología. ![\\"half-true\\"](\\" th.jpg\\") ![\\"half-true\\"](\\" true.jpg\\") By Maria Briceño • September 27, 2024 * ![](\\" ![](\\" Social Media stated on September 24, 2024 in social media posts: Vice President Kamala Harris responded, “Next question please,” when asked about the economy during an Aug. 29 CNN interview. ![\\"pants-fire\\"](\\" th.jpg\\") ![\\"pants-fire\\"](\\" pants-fire.jpg\\") By Sofia Ahmed • September 27, 2024 * ![](\\" ![](\\" Threads posts stated on September 18, 2024 in a Threads post: Melania Trump “was an escort.” ![\\"false\\"](\\" ![\\"false\\"](\\" By Ciara O\'Rourke • September 27, 2024 * ![](\\" ![](\\" Facebook posts stated on September 23, 2024 in a Facebook post: “Serena Williams reportedly passes away following tragic car crash in Texas.” ![\\"pants-fire\\"](\\" th.jpg\\") ![\\"pants-fire\\"](\\" pants-fire.jpg\\") By Ciara O\'Rourke • September 27, 2024 * ![](\\" ![](\\" Facebook posts stated on September 25, 2024 in a Facebook post: “Elon Musk silences Taylor Swift: Shocking ban wipes out 1 million followers and costs her a staggering $72 million!” ![\\"false\\"](\\" ![\\"false\\"](\\" By Ciara O\'Rourke • September 27, 2024 * ![](\\" ![](\\" Jared Moskowitz stated on September 19, 2024 in a House hearing: “Project 2025 wants to get rid of NOAA” and the National Weather Service. ![\\"half-true\\"](\\" th.jpg\\") ![\\"half-true\\"](\\" true.jpg\\") By Amy Sherman • September 26, 2024 Load more ### Support independent fact-checking. 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Our new health care plans are up to 60 less expensive and better than Obamacare