The dynamic of Republicans undermining the ACA and then pointing to resulting rate increases as proof that it must be repealed predates President Trump. For years, Republicans have refused to fund so-called risk corridor payments at the level required by the ACA. Those payments were designed to help encourage more insurers to offer plans in the exchanges by compensating them for some of the risks associated with setting prices in a new market. If the rates insurers set for their plans were too low to cover their risk pool — for example, if their new customers turned out to be sicker than expected — the federal government would make payments to mitigate their losses. Companies that made unexpectedly large profits would contribute to the fund, and the federal government would make up the rest.