WASHINGTON — President Trump is putting a half-billion dollars in the mail — and making sure Americans know who to thank for it.
About 950,000 Obamacare enrollees in 30 states will receive $500 checks as early as this week — premised on the Biden administration’s alleged overcharging of user fees to health insurance companies, which in turn charged consumers higher rates.
“I am proud to return your money to you, and I will never stop fighting to put the American People FIRST, restore Affordability, protect your hard-earned money, and lower the Cost of Healthcare,” Trump says in the letter mailed Wednesday and first reported by USA Today.
“For years, the Biden administration overcharged you to fund the operation of HealthCare.gov. That money belongs to hard-working Americans, not the Government, and now I’m returning it to you!”
Trump added: “You have paid into this flawed System, and now you are finally getting something back.”
The 30 states whose residents will receive checks include many with hotly contested congressional races on Nov. 3, including Florida, Iowa, Michigan, North Carolina, Ohio and Texas.
States that have their own independent exchanges, such as California, New York and Pennsylvania, won’t be receiving checks.
A White House official told USA Today that most recipients earn about 400% of the poverty line — $64,000, or $132,000 for a family of four — and paid most or all of their own insurance premiums without federal subsidies.
Although a significant sum of money, Vice President JD Vance announced last week that the federal government was saving the Obamacare program about $2.2 billion by booting 750,000 users suspected of fraudulent enrollment.
About 23 million Americans were registered for insurance this year through Obamacare exchanges.
Trump announced the $500 checks on Sept. 10 during the Republican midterm convention in Dallas — one day after promising all adult citizens $5,000 if the GOP holds control of Congress, horrifying fiscal conservatives fearful of accelerating inflation and debt.
Trump previously signed letters accompanying stimulus checks during the COVID-19 pandemic, as did President Joe Biden.
The 30 states getting rebates include Alabama, Alaska, Arizona, Arkansas, Delaware, Hawaii, Indiana, Kansas, Louisiana, Mississippi, Missouri, Montana, Nebraska, New Hampshire, North Dakota, Oklahoma, Oregon, South Carolina, South Dakota, Tennessee, Utah, West Virginia, Wisconsin and Wyoming.