Trump holds 'listening session' for 'victims' of ObamaCare

President Trump.
(Image credit: Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images)

President Trump sat down with a group of frustrated Americans on Monday to talk about the "very, very failed and failing ObamaCare law." The meeting, which the White House billed as "a listening session" with "victims" of the Affordable Care Act, kicked off with Trump blaming the press for "making ObamaCare look so good." "Fact is, ObamaCare is a disaster," Trump said.

He then went around the table, hearing stories from people from across the country who have struggled under ObamaCare. "We paid $8,000 for five months and were never able to use it," a working mom from Georgia told Trump about ObamaCare, noting the law "almost put our family in financial ruin." An Arizona woman said she experienced first-hand that "the 116 percent increase is real," explaining she lost her plan three times before finally deciding this year to opt out. A physician in Texas said "a lot of patients are not adequately covered by ObamaCare," recounting patients being shocked by how much of their hospital bill they're responsible for "because their deductible is so high."

"If we're allowed to do what we want to do, it will get better — much better," Trump said, referring to Republicans' recently introduced plan to repeal and replace ObamaCare. Since House Republicans introduced the long-awaited plan last week, it's faced criticism from health-care experts on both sides of the aisle who fear it will leave fewer Americans insured.

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