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Republicans may have failed to overthrow Obamacare this week, but there are plenty of ways they can chip away at it. The Trump administration has already begun using its regulatory authority to water down less prominent aspects of the 2010 healthcare law. (Steenhuysen, 3/26)

With the collapse of Republicans’ health plan in the House on Friday, the Trump administration is set to ramp up its efforts to alter the Affordable Care Act in one of the few ways it has left — by making changes to the law through waivers and rule changes. The initiative now rests with Health and Human Services Secretary Tom Price, who has vowed to review every page of regulation and guidance related to the ACA. The steps he and the administration take next could have sweeping repercussions, accomplishing some of the same types of changes Republicans were unable to push through Congress. (Armour, 3/25)

Matt Lloyd, an HHS spokesman, didn’t respond to a request for comment on Friday about how the agency will approach the health law going forward. Sylvia Burwell, the department’s secretary under Obama, said there are “important steps that the administration can take to promote competition and affordability in the marketplace as well as maintain the quality improvements that millions of Americans have experienced.” (Tracer, 3/24)

President Trump and the Republican-led Congress are using a special rule to do away with many of President Obama’s regulations. Since Trump entered the White House two months ago, the House has passed 14 resolutions disapproving of Obama-era regulations under the Congressional Review Act (CRA). The Senate has approved 10 resolutions, and President Trump has signed three measures into law. The CRA allows Congress to do away with regulations through an expedited legislative process that prevents the minority from using the Senate’s filibuster. The catch is that Congress only has a window of 60 legislative days in which it can reach back into 2016 to repeal a regulation through this process. (Devaney, 3/26)