{"id":2640837,"date":"2026-08-05T08:14:01","date_gmt":"2026-08-05T12:14:01","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/utm_sourcerssutm_mediumrssutm_campaignwhy-the-trump-administration-was-right-to-end-the-medicare-part-d-insurer-bailout\/"},"modified":"2026-08-05T08:19:27","modified_gmt":"2026-08-05T12:19:27","slug":"utm_sourcerssutm_mediumrssutm_campaignwhy-the-trump-administration-was-right-to-end-the-medicare-part-d-insurer-bailout","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/utm_sourcerssutm_mediumrssutm_campaignwhy-the-trump-administration-was-right-to-end-the-medicare-part-d-insurer-bailout\/","title":{"rendered":"Why Trump Was Right To End The Medicare Part D Insurer Bailout"},"content":{"rendered":"<aside class=\"mashsb-container mashsb-main mashsb-stretched\"><div class=\"mashsb-box\"><div class=\"mashsb-count mash-medium\" style=\"&quot;\"><div class=\"counts mashsbcount\">24<\/div><span class=\"mashsb-sharetext\">SHARES<\/span><\/div><div class=\"mashsb-buttons\"><a class=\"mashicon-facebook mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/sharer.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.conservativenewsdaily.net%2Fbreaking-news%2Futm_sourcerssutm_mediumrssutm_campaignwhy-the-trump-administration-was-right-to-end-the-medicare-part-d-insurer-bailout%2F\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Facebook<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-twitter mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/intent\/tweet?text=&amp;url=https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/?p=2640837&amp;via=ConservNewsDly\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Twitter<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-subscribe mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"#\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Subscribe<\/span><\/a><div class=\"onoffswitch2 mash-medium mashsb-noshadow\" style=\"display:none\"><\/div><\/div>\n            <\/div>\n                <div style=\"clear:both\"><\/div><\/aside>\n            <!-- Share buttons by mashshare.net - Version: 4.0.47--><p>The Trump governance&#8217;s decision to end a temporary bailout program for Medicare Part D in 2027 has garnered criticism, but the accusation that it is ending the entire Part D program is false. The program itself, established in 2003, will continue unchanged; only the extralegal subsidies provided to insurers through a bailout are being discontinued. This bailout, introduced unilaterally by the Biden administration in 2024 under a \u201cpremium stabilization presentation,\u201d was designed to <a href=\"https:\/\/amzn.to\/3YuVZYV\" >mitigate rising costs caused<\/a> by recent legislative reforms, notably the inflation Reduction Act (IRA). These reforms shifted costs to insurers and reduced out-of-pocket expenses for seniors, leading to <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/democrats-fix-for-a-5-trillion-medicare-spending-increase-is-the-same-proposals-that-caused-it\/\" title=\"Dem &#039;Fix&#039; For T ... ... Hike Is More Of The Same\">increased drug consumption<\/a> and higher overall spending. The bailouts, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/house-republican-introduces-austerity-bill-to-kill-zombie-government-programs\/\" title=\"House Republican Introduces Austerity Bill to Kill \u2018Zombie\u2019 Government Programs\">costing taxpayers billions<\/a>, helped keep premiums artificially low but contributed to long-term unsustainable costs for the program-currently with taxpayers covering about 87% of expenses. Ending these subsidies is viewed as a necessary step to address the escalating costs and ensure the program\u2019s sustainability, especially since insurers now have sufficient data to set premiums accurately. Although premiums may see a slight increase for some enrollees, the majority will face minimal or no change, and overall Part D remains a valuable and comparatively affordable benefit for seniors.The move is seen as a prudent management of taxpayer funds and a step toward restoring competitive balance and solvency to the Medicare program.  <\/p>\n<p class=\"readmore\">\n    <button onclick=\"showReadMore()\" id=\"readmorebtn\">Read more&#8230;<\/button>\n<\/p>\n<hr id=\"line\">\n<span id=\"more\"><\/p>\n<div>\n<p>The Trump administration\u2019s recent <a href=\"https:\/\/www.cms.gov\/newsroom\/fact-sheets\/medicare-part-d-2027-national-average-monthly-bid-amount-information\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">decision<\/a> to end a temporary Part D subsidy program in 2027 attracted much press attention, and some criticism. The California Democratic Party claimed on  <a href=\"https:\/\/x.com\/CA_Dem\/status\/2082518283711107346\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">X<\/a> that \u201c25 million people, mainly seniors, count on Medicare Part D to afford their prescriptions. Donald Trump is putting their health on the line by ending the program.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>This is\u00a0 absurd\u2014and false. The Trump administration is not\u00a0 ending the Part D program (established by Congress in 2003) and couldn\u2019t do so even if it wanted to. However, it <em>is<\/em> ending a temporary and extralegal bailout program that provided billions of dollars in subsidies to insurers. That\u2019s because Democrats made changes to the program that have cost far more than they claimed.<\/p>\n<h2><strong>The Bailout, Explained<\/strong><\/h2>\n<p>In summer 2024, the Biden administration <a href=\"https:\/\/www.cms.gov\/newsroom\/fact-sheets\/cms-releases-2025-medicare-part-d-bid-information-and-announces-premium-stabilization-demonstration\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">announced<\/a> a unilateral\u00a0 \u201cpremium stabilization demonstration.\u201d The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) noted the new program would start at the2025 plan year. This was just in time for premium announcements to land in seniors\u2019 mailboxes just prior to the November 2024 election.<\/p>\n<p>The program <a href=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/2026\/06\/26\/democrats-fix-for-a-5-trillion-medicare-spending-increase-is-the-same-proposals-that-caused-it\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">came into effect<\/a> largely due to Democrats\u2019 Inflation (Reduction) Act. That law shifted and restructured costs Part D insurers had to pay. It also reduced seniors\u2019 out-of-pocket expenses on prescription drugs. The latter change will, all else equal, result in higher spending, because seniors will consume more and more costly drugs if they\u00a0 have to pay for fewer or none of their own costs.<\/p>\n<p>The IRA already included one \u201cstabilization\u201d mechanism in a statute running through 2029, intending to minimize any premium increases. But, after seeing preliminary plan bids for 2025, CMS effectively admitted this lone bailout would be insufficient to prevent large spikes in premiums or insurer exits. <\/p>\n<p>So it conjured a <em>second,<\/em> unilateral bailout to minimize any potential disruptions. Of course, as I <a href=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/2024\/08\/12\/medicare-agency-just-gave-kamala-harris-an-in-kind-contribution-with-your-tax-dollars\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">noted at the time<\/a>, this also amounted to using taxpayer funds to prevent Kamala Harris from suffering a big political controversy in the days leading up to the presidential election.<\/p>\n<h2><strong>Unsustainable Costs<\/strong><\/h2>\n<p>As the <em>Washington Post<\/em> <a href=\"https:\/\/archive.ph\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">wrote<\/a> in a recent editorial, these \u201csubsidies have helped keep premiums down but simply by shifting more of the cost on to the federal government,\u201d rather than lowering costs. Indeed, while seniors traditionally paid 25.5 percent\u00a0 of Part D benefit costs via premiums, this year seniors are paying only about <a href=\"https:\/\/www.medpac.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/Tab-K-Part-D-bids-Jan-2026.pdf\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">half that amount<\/a>, or 13 percent.\u00a0 Taxpayers foot the bill for roughly seven in eight dollars of program spending (87 percent).<\/p>\n<p>The IRA bailouts resulted in <a href=\"https:\/\/www.medpac.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/Mar26_Ch13_MedPAC_Report_To_Congress_SEC.pdf\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">$40 billion<\/a> in <a href=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/2026\/06\/26\/democrats-fix-for-a-5-trillion-medicare-spending-increase-is-the-same-proposals-that-caused-it\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">additional taxpayer spending<\/a> in 2025 and 2026, and the costs will add up even more in coming years. I <a href=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/2026\/06\/18\/the-bill-for-medicare-insolvency-is-coming-due-and-its-not-pretty\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">noted recently<\/a> that this year\u2019s <a href=\"https:\/\/www.cms.gov\/oact\/tr\/2026\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Medicare trustees report<\/a> increased the long-term cost of the Part D program by roughly one-third, or $5 <em>trillion<\/em>, compared to the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.cms.gov\/oact\/tr\/2025\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">2025 trustees report<\/a>.<\/p>\n<h2><strong>Justifiable Action<\/strong><\/h2>\n<p>Given these skyrocketing costs, it makes perfect sense to end the Biden administration\u2019s unilateral bailout. Because the IRA\u2019s major changes took effect in January 2025, insurers now <a href=\"https:\/\/www.cms.gov\/newsroom\/fact-sheets\/medicare-part-d-2027-national-average-monthly-bid-amount-information\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">have enough<\/a> actuarial information (i.e., plan claims) to price their products without uncertainty leading to major variations in premiums. <\/p>\n<p>Eliminating one bailout\u2014remember, the statutory bailout remains in effect through 2029\u2014may increase Part D premiums slightly. But CMS <a href=\"https:\/\/www.wsj.com\/health\/healthcare\/trump-administration-to-end-medicare-drug-plan-subsidy-76d255d1?mod=trending_now_news_5\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">noted<\/a> that the majority of enrollees will either face no change or a decline in premiums (25 percent), or an increase of under $10 per month (30 percent). Given that taxpayers will still pay a greater share of Part D costs than before the IRA and premiums have <a href=\"https:\/\/www.aei.org\/economics\/ending-temporary-part-d-subsidies-makes-sense\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">fallen by more than one-third<\/a> in inflation-adjusted terms over the past 15 years, Part D still represents a good value for seniors.<\/p>\n<p>By ending the Biden administration\u2019s unilateral insurer bailout, the Trump administration served as a smart steward of scarce taxpayer dollars, while restoring more of a competitive balance to Part D. False scaremongering by the left aside, the action will help to preserve a Medicare program that faces <a href=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/2022\/06\/10\/fact-check-medicare-is-already-functionally-insolvent\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">significant solvency concerns<\/a>.<\/p>\n<hr>\n<div>\n<p>      Chris Jacobs is founder and CEO of Juniper Research Group and author of the book &#8220;<a href=\"https:\/\/www.amazon.com\/dp\/1645720020\">The Case Against Single Payer<\/a>.&#8221; He is on Twitter: <a href=\"http:\/\/twitter.com\/chrisjacobsHC\">@chrisjacobsHC<\/a>.<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div>\n<p><\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Trump ends temporary Part D bailout, not the program<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":521,"featured_media":2640838,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_mo_disable_npp":"","fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/pexels-towfiqu-barbhuiya-3440682-8569643-scaled.jpg","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[33651],"tags":[37167,41035,83708,83707,3634],"class_list":["post-2640837","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-the-western-journal","tag-healthcare-policy","tag-healthcare-reform","tag-insurance-bailout","tag-medicare-part-d","tag-trump"],"fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/pexels-towfiqu-barbhuiya-3440682-8569643-scaled.jpg","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2640837","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/521"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2640837"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2640837\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2640841,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2640837\/revisions\/2640841"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2640838"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2640837"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2640837"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2640837"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}