President Barack Obama has enrolled in a health care plan under the Affordable Care Act, the White House confirmed Monday.
According to a White House official, Obama selected a bronze plan through the District of Columbia’s exchange.
“He was pleased to participate in a plan as a show of support for these marketplaces which are providing quality, affordable health care options to more than a million people,” the official said.
While Obama did not physically sign up for the plan himself — members of his staff did in person, NBC’s Peter Alexander reports — he was involved in selecting the plan. The president will pay for the plan’s premiums himself.
Obama’s decision to sign up for his signature health care program is entirely symbolic, as the president receives his health care through the military.
Obama promised to sign up for coverage under the law in March 2010, after Sen. Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa) proposed an amendment to the law requiring the president to do so.
“We think the amendment is unnecessary,” then-White House spokesman Reid Cherlin said at the time. “The president will participate in the exchange. But let’s be clear: The amendments being offered by Senate Republicans, including this one, are just a ploy to delay the bill.”
Source: Huffington Post