President Trump’s decision to stop paying subsidies to insurance companies that cover many low-income Americans is his most overt action so far to undermine the Obamacare markets, which reopen for sign-ups on Nov. 1.

But the timing of the announcement, late Thursday night, means the ending of subsidies may be less disruptive than it might have been months ago, when he began threatening such action. It still could cause insurers to leave some Obamacare markets and places where customers have no insurance choice, but it probably won’t cause the widespread meltdown it might have, if it had happened earlier this year.

The subsidies help insurance companies provide discounts on deductibles and other cost-sharing for consumers, which they are required to do by law. When Congress wrote the Affordable Care Act, it made clear that insurers were entitled to the payments, but it failed to provide a clear funding mechanism. The uncertainty in the legislative language opened the way for a lawsuit, and now the president’s decision.

In theory, precipitously ending the payments could lead to catastrophic market failures. Insurers set prices for their insurance this year, assuming the payments would continue to be made, and have no ability to raise them midyear to cover their losses. But, because the president has repeatedly signaled that the payments might cease and we are nearing the end of 2017, many plans set their prices for next year’s products assuming the subsidies would not be paid.