The Washington PostDemocracy Dies in Darkness

Trump health promises thwarted by feuding aides, shifting orders

December 11, 2019 at 5:49 p.m. EST
President Trump talks about transparency in healthcare prices, flanked by CMS Administrator Seema Verma (left) and HHS Secretary Alex Azar (right). (Tom Brenner/Reuters)

Bitter infighting among President Trump’s top health officials — as well as his own shifting demands on signature policies — have undermined key planks of the president’s health-care agenda as he girds for a tough reelection campaign, according to current and former administration officials.

Though polls show the issue is critically important to voters, Trump has failed to deliver on his most important health-care promises. His plan to dramatically lower the prices consumers pay for prescription drugs has been stalled by internal disputes, as well as by technical and regulatory issues, said six people with knowledge of the process. And an administration plan to replace the Affordable Care Act has not materialized even as the administration seeks to strike down the law in federal court.