There are two things you need to know about Congressman Tom Price’s views on health policy: he believes in universal coverage and he believes in tax credits.
Why is that important? For one thing, these two issues have been dividing Republicans and conservatives for the better part of three decades. For another thing, as the new Secretary of Health and Human Services, Tom Price will be the point man for the Trump administration on matters affecting health.
In case you haven’t noticed it’s been almost seven years since the passage of the Affordable Care Act (Obamacare), and in all that time the GOP has not proffered an alternative that most Republicans have been willing to support. One of the sticking points is the idea of a tax creditbasically a dollar-for-dollar reduction in taxes owed for the first so many dollars spent on health insurance. The other dividing line is whether universal coverage should even be a public policy goal.