How Trump tweets about Obamacare Presented by

IN HIS OWN WORDS: HOW TRUMP TWEETS ABOUT OBAMACARE — Critics say the Republican front-runner's been deliberately vague about his health policy. But using his Twitter platform, Donald Trump has been explicit, again and again, about the Affordable Care Act.

Does he get the health law right? Judge for yourself. Pro's Jason Millman and I dug into the 240 times that Trump has tweeted about Obamacare in the past five years and pulled out 17 memorable statements. Those include:

— Trump putting the health law in its proper context: "First Titanic sunk on its maiden voyage.Next the Hindenburg explodes on its first flight to America.Now we suffer the ObamaCare rollout!"

— Trump portraying the ACA as a super-weapon: "If Syria was forced to use Obamacare they would self-destruct without a shot being fired. Obama should sell them that idea!"

— Trump arguing for the revitalizing powers of health reform: "Maybe some of the dead voters who helped get President Obama elected can be brought back to life after signing up for ObamaCare."

See our curated list of Trump's Obamacare tweets: http://bit.ly/1UolJQx

THANK GOODNESS IT'S FRIDAY PULSE — Where we're pleased our readers would rather line up for Zubik v. Burwell than Batman v. Superman. Tips to [email protected] or @ddiamond on Twitter.

INDIANA BANS ABORTION IF FETUS HAS DOWN SYNDROME — Gov. Mike Pence signed a measure on Thursday that makes Indiana the second state to ban abortions when the fetus is diagnosed with a disability such as Down syndrome. The measure also prohibits abortions that are based on a fetus' race or gender. The controversial measure is expected to face legal challenges.

ARIZONA LEGISLATURE BANS FETAL TISSUE RESEARCH — The state would become the sixth state to outlaw research using aborted fetal tissue if Gov. Doug Ducey signs the bill, which passed the House on Thursday.

WHAT'S IN THE NEW CBO ESTIMATES — The agency issued its latest baseline projections on Thursday, and here are two takeaways from Pro's Nancy Cook:

— The ACA will cost 25 percent less between 2016-2019 than the CBO's original estimate, thanks in part to the ongoing health cost slowdown and slower-than-expected exchange enrollment

— By 2026, Medicaid enrollment is expected to grow to 69 million, and Medicaid and CHIP will cover one in four people under age 65

Three more projections that caught PULSE's eye:

152 million: The number of Americans covered by employment-sponsored insurance in 2026, only a slight decrease from 155 million today

18 million: The number of ACA exchange enrollees in 2018, down from 24 million in last year's projection

28 million: The number of uninsured people in 2026, slightly up from 27 million today

See the CBO's new estimates: http://1.usa.gov/1UnZtpO

Reactions and analysis

— Loren Adler, Brookings Institution: "CBO now thinks the health insurance landscape shakes out differently as a result of the ACA: fewer people on the exchanges almost entirely replaced by more folks gaining Medicaid coverage plus a slight bump in the number of uninsured."

— Aaron Albright, HHS spokesperson: "Some of the enrollment trends that CBO predicted [haven't] come to fruition — for example, CBO predicted a major shift of people moving from employer-based health insurance on to the Marketplace. That hasn't happened to date."

A message from PhRMA: Today, there are several promising vaccine candidates in stage three clinical trials. These trials have tens of thousands of participants, from every walk of life. From development to robust clinical trials, and throughout manufacturing, these vaccine candidates follow the same rigorous process of other vaccines that have saved millions of lives. More.

HOUSE HEALTH CARE APPROPRIATOR LAYS OUT VISION — In an extensive Q&A, Rep. Tom Cole tells Pro's Ben Weyl and Matthew Nussbaum about his priorities as chair of the House Labor-HHS-Education Appropriations Subcommittee. Two quick takeaways:

— There's common ground on the cancer "moon shot": Cole praised the administration's approach to using existing funds and building on current lines of research, and said the White House team he met with are "practical people."

"There are some areas where we can cooperate," Cole said. "We just won’t get there the way they want to. We’ll have to do it by reducing expenditures on other parts of the bill and relying on discretionary spending."

— Zika funding could be coming: The GOP has resisted the president's request for $1.8 billion in emergency funds, and Cole explained Republicans were not inclined to write the administration a blank check. Still, he added, "We don't dismiss this. We take it very seriously," and he said he relied on CDC and NIH officials' professional assessments on Zika.

Read health care highlights of our interview with Cole: http://politico.pro/1Rkh3Zg

Read the full interview to see Cole's priorities for education, labor and more: http://politico.pro/1q4AhYz

CHELSEA CLINTON: EVEN AMERICANS COVERED BY ACA FACE 'CRUSHING COSTS' — That's according to video of a Clinton campaign event obtained by The Weekly Standard.

In the video, Chelsea Clinton says her mother is "figuring out whether she could [lower costs] through executive action, or she would need to do that through tax credits working with Congress. She thinks either of those will help solve the challenge of kind of the crushing costs that still exist for too many people, who even are part of the Affordable Care Act and buying insurance."

See the video: http://tws.io/1MoqaaR (H/t Nancy Cook)

— Is Chelsea breaking the first rule of being a good surrogate: Do no harm? Beyond that "crushing costs" comment, Chelsea Clinton suggested last week that her mother wanted to extend health coverage to undocumented immigrants, a policy position that Hillary Clinton distanced herself from at a town hall on Monday. Chelsea Clinton also appeared at a campaign event this week with embattled Theranos CEO Elizabeth Holmes.

KENT CONRAD's 'SINGLE GREATEST REGRET' ON ACA: NO DRUG NEGOTIATING POWER — The former Senate Finance Committee member tells Morning Consult's Caitlin Owens that he wishes the ACA had empowered Medicare to negotiate on drug prices. "That would have made a profound difference" in controlling costs, Conrad says now.

Why leave the measure out? A variety of reasons, lawmakers say, including that drug costs were a lower priority in 2010 than they are today. http://bit.ly/1T8jlfb

NFL RESPONDS AFTER NYT SLAMS THEIR CONCUSSION RESEARCH — Some critics suggest that the NFL's approach to brain injuries is the new "big tobacco," and the New York Times on Thursday sketched out a deeper connection — arguing that the NFL and tobacco firms shared lobbyists, lawyers and strategies. The Times also skewered the NFL's concussion research, concluding that the league's studies left out key data. http://nyti.ms/1MFdxD7

In response, football officials said that the Times misconstrued preliminary research and pushed coincidences to fit a "predetermined narrative" that linked the NFL and the tobacco industry.

"The NFL is not the tobacco industry. It had no connection to the tobacco industry. Nor did it follow the tobacco industry playbook to conceal data to skew scientific research," the NFL said in a statement that refuted the article point-by-point. "The Times had the facts — now you do." http://bit.ly/1LKTdFM

ON TAP NEXT WEEK — It's a relatively quiet week with Congress on recess. One event to watch: CMS on Thursday holds a meeting on HHS's risk adjustment program to solicit feedback and discuss potential improvements to the methodology for the 2018 benefit year and beyond.

YOU MUST REMEMBER THIS — It's easier than you might think to improve your memorization skills, Austin Frakt writes in the New York Times, days after he taught himself to remember Pi to the 100th decimal. His secret? The power of visualization. Here's how it works: http://nyti.ms/1RAF1v4

WHAT WE'RE READING

The top infectious disease killer on the planet? Tuberculosis. And it's on the rise: http://huff.to/1UfnOhj

Only one Republican presidential candidate — Ted Cruz — is serious about repealing the ACA, Cato's Michael Cannon writes: http://washex.am/1o8OQZs

More than 80 percent of Americans say they like the Obama administration's cancer "moon shot," according to a new STAT-Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health poll. http://bit.ly/1RAC1Pj

Why is Robert DeNiro's famed Tribeca Film Festival screening an anti-vaccine movie by a notorious and discredited researcher? http://lat.ms/1RpgDNJ

A Harvard study's secrets to a happy life: http://nyti.ms/1Zz1YF8

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