Biden and Obama Video Call... Celebrating Record Enrollment in Obamacare

'Universal Health Insurance' ObamaCare Subscribers Surpass 31 Million

[Image source=AP Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Kim Suhwan] U.S. President Joe Biden and former President Barack Obama met via video call for the first time in a while. The purpose was to promote to the public the fact that the number of enrollees in the Affordable Care Act (ACA), commonly known as 'Obamacare,' has reached an all-time high.

On the 5th (local time), President Biden spoke with former President Obama via the internet video conferencing platform Zoom and announced that the number of Obamacare enrollees has surpassed 31 million.

Obamacare was designed to expand health insurance coverage, but former President Donald Trump implemented policies to reduce it during his tenure. In response, President Biden pledged during his presidential campaign to expand and strengthen Obamacare to complement private insurance.

Shortly after his election, President Biden signed an executive order to expand enrollment among low-income groups, including a special enrollment period through the integrated health insurance enrollment website 'healthcare.gov.'

During the Zoom conversation, President Biden revealed that 1.2 million people enrolled during this special enrollment period, and former President Obama celebrated, saying, "Joe Biden, we did this together."

Obama continued, "We always talked about how we could establish the principles of universal health insurance and how we could build on that," then referenced the large-scale stimulus package passed by Congress last March, saying, "I just want to say how proud I am of what you did with the American Rescue Plan."

President Biden also posted on Twitter, saying, "I couldn’t think of a better person than President Obama to celebrate this milestone with, so I called him."

Both the current and former presidents urged people to hurry and enroll before the special enrollment period ends on August 15 to secure medical coverage under Obamacare.

Former President Obama said, "If there are still people who haven’t looked into it yet, go to healthcare.gov."

Health and Human Services Secretary Xavier Becerra said that the historic numbers announced today represent the success of the ACA and the need for quality, affordable health insurance in our country. He added, "The President’s American Rescue Plan has taken a big step forward, and we will continue to advance the fight for health coverage," according to the political news outlet The Hill.