See Stephen Colbert Mock ‘Trump Care’ as Weak Diet Soda Version of Obamacare
Stephen Colbert eviscerated House Republicans’ recently unveiled Affordable Care Act replacement plan during Tuesday’s Late Show. With the legislation facing criticism from both sides of the political spectrum, the host compared the bill with a sub-par diet soda. “Obamacare Lite: great taste, less coverage,” he cracked.
Colbert said the 66-page plan featured a couple positive holdovers from Obamacare, like children being kept on their parents’ plans until age 26 and insurance companies unable to discriminate due to pre-existing conditions. However, he echoed the objections of many Democrat lawmakers, who estimate the plan will cover 20 million fewer people than the ACA. “20 million fewer,” he said. “That sounds like Trump’s inauguration.”
One major switch with “Trump Care” is that the bill replaces federal insurance subsidies with tax credits. “Everything’s going to be fine,” Colbert said, “but you’re going to have your colonoscopy at H&R Block.”
The comedian also highlighted another strange section of the plan: that over one-tenth of its pages focus on denying Medicaid to lottery winners. “If anything, Trump should empathize with people who were handed a bunch of money they didn’t earn,” Colbert said. “He was born with a lotto ticket in his hand.”