Judge blocks Trump's small-business health insurance plan

A federal judge has struck down a small-business health insurance plan widely touted by President Donald Trump, the second setback in a week for the administration's health care initiatives. U.S. District Judge John D. Bates wrote in his opinion late Thursday that so-called "association health plans" were "clearly an end-run" around consumer protections required by the Obama-era Affordable Care Act. On Wednesday, another federal judge blocked the Trump administration's Medicaid work requirements for low-income people. The legal setbacks came as Trump unexpectedly pivoted back to health care this week, promising a new plan to replace the ACA, commonly called "Obamacare." But many congressional Republicans don't want to have that fight again. Democrats are gleeful, seeing a chance to shift the national conversation to one of their top issues.