President Donald Trump sharply criticized the Affordable Care Act during remarks Friday night in Rocky Mount, North Carolina, accusing the law of enriching insurance companies at the expense of consumers and signaling renewed efforts by his administration and congressional Republicans to reduce health care costs.
Speaking to supporters, Trump argued that the health care law commonly known as Obamacare was structured to benefit insurers rather than patients and blamed Democrats for rising premiums.
His comments came just hours after he said he would convene a meeting with health insurance companies to push them to lower prices, as House Republicans advanced legislation to the Senate aimed at cutting health care costs.
“The current Unaffordable Care Act, commonly known as Barack Hussein Obamacare, was created to make insurance companies rich. It was bad health care at much too high a cost, and you see now that the steep increase in premiums — it’s being demanded by the Democrats,” Trump said.
“It was never any good, Obamacare. It was done for the benefit of insurance companies, which totally control the Democrats,” he added.
Trump also referenced recent government funding battles tied to health care policy.
Democrats sought multiple concessions during the partial government shutdown that began in October and lasted 43 days, including an extension of COVID-era Obamacare subsidies.
The continuing resolution Trump signed on November 13 is set to expire at the end of January, raising the possibility of another funding standoff.
Trump warned that Democrats could again force a shutdown to secure those subsidies, which he said primarily benefit insurance companies rather than consumers.
“That’s why you could have a strike on January 30. You could have another shutdown because the Democrats are totally in the hands of — they’re totally controlled by the insurance companies, big wealthy companies,” Trump said.
He contrasted that approach with his own health care priorities, emphasizing direct support for individuals rather than insurers.
“Again, I want the money to go directly to the people so you can buy your own health care, and you’ll get much better health care at a much lower price, and the only losers will be the insurance companies that have gotten rich,” he said.
.@POTUS: "The current Unaffordable Care Act, commonly referred to as Barack Hussein Obamacare, was created to make insurance companies rich… I want the money to go directly to the people so you can buy your own healthcare." pic.twitter.com/UyrkbvTtho
— Rapid Response 47 (@RapidResponse47) December 20, 2025
Trump’s remarks followed an announcement earlier Friday detailing additional agreements between his administration and pharmaceutical companies aimed at lowering prescription drug prices.
He revealed nine more deals with drugmakers, bringing the total number of agreements reached since late September to between six and 14, according to his remarks.
During that announcement, Trump said his administration plans to apply similar pressure to health insurers, signaling a forthcoming meeting designed to force price reductions.
“I’m going to call a meeting of the insurance companies. I’m going to see if they get their price down, to put it very bluntly,” Trump said.
He said the meeting could take place in Florida while he is at Mar-a-Lago or in Washington, D.C., during the first week he returns to the White House.
Trump added that large insurance companies have received “far more money than they’re entitled to.”
.@POTUS: "I'm going to call a meeting of the big insurance companies that have gotten so rich… and I'm going to see if they get their price down, to put it very bluntly." pic.twitter.com/4tj22Wsqti
— Rapid Response 47 (@RapidResponse47) December 19, 2025
House Republicans have recently advanced legislation targeting health care costs, part of a broader push by the GOP to present an alternative to Obamacare while reducing expenses for families.
Trump has repeatedly argued that existing subsidies and mandates under the Affordable Care Act distort the market and shield insurers from competition.
Throughout his remarks, Trump framed health care costs as a political and economic issue that remains unresolved more than a decade after Obamacare’s passage.
He reiterated his view that Democrats remain aligned with insurance companies, while positioning his administration as focused on shifting power and resources directly to consumers.
The rally in Rocky Mount marked one of several public appearances where Trump has returned to health care as a central issue, tying insurance premiums, prescription drug prices, and federal spending to broader debates over government control and corporate influence.
His comments also set the stage for renewed confrontations with insurers and Democrats as Congress approaches another funding deadline at the end of January.
Although insurance companies have a lot of blame in medical care costs, the federal government should place an extremely low limit on hospital and doctor’s exorbitant charges. After all, the government can agree to pay a certain price for surgery via the VA, Federal Employee Healthcare System, Medicare and Medicaid systems. Make those payments by the feds reasonable and those costs will permeate the rest of the healthcare system.