This is an archived article that was published on sltrib.com in 2017, and information in the article may be outdated. It is provided only for personal research purposes and may not be reprinted.
Health insurers are pressing President Donald Trump and Congress to guarantee a crucial customer subsidy for the Affordable Care Act's shaky insurance exchanges, and one of the biggest carriers has thrown in its participation as bargaining chip.
Blue Cross-Blue Shield insurer Anthem says that it's planning to return next year to the exchanges, but its participation could change if it doesn't know for certain by early June that the government will fund cost-sharing subsidies next year.
These subsidies are paid directly to insurers, and they help trim out-of-pocket costs like deductibles for customers with low incomes.
Democrats and Republicans are fighting in Congress over whether to include subsidy money in a $1 trillion-plus spending bill to keep the government open. The money also has been challenged in federal court.