Obamacare Architect: Some Hope for 'Universal Coverage' in Replacement

The architect of the Affordable Care Act, Dr. Ezekiel Emanuel, said he had some hope amid President-elect Donald Trump's plan to repeal and replace Obamacare.

"The one thing I really got from him . . . as he said on the campaign trail, he does want to create a system that Americans can be proud of that has universal coverage, and he wants it to be bipartisan," Emanuel told CNBC's "Squawk Box."

Emanuel, the chairman of the University of Pennsylvania's Department of Medical Ethics and Health Policy, said he is concerned about removing people from insurance with no replacement.

"The big problem is that if you get rid of the mandate, you get rid of the revenues, you get rid of the subsidies for people . . . if you do that, and you also eliminate the revenue that funds the act — which Republicans have said they want to do — it makes it very hard to create a replacement option. I think it's really a nightmarish scenario, and it's even giving Republicans pause."

Trump slammed Obamacare in a tweet early Tuesday morning, calling it "lousy healthcare."

Kellyanne Conway, Trump's incoming presidential counselor, said Tuesday that "The Affordable Care Act has done some good things . . . but the fact is many Americans feel harmed by the Affordable Care Act."

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