Vice President–elect Mike Pence has said that the Trump administration will begin to unwind the Affordable Care Act (ACA) by executive order soon after Inauguration Day. In a new To the Point post jointly published with the Health Affairs Blog, Timothy S. Jost, emeritus professor at the Washington and Lee University School of Law, looks at how the president could exercise his authority to dismantle the ACA.

While President Trump could not legally repeal the ACA or any of its requirements through executive order, he could direct the federal agencies that oversee the ACA to minimize regulatory or reporting burdens, Jost says. The administration could also reduce these agencies’ resources or direct them to stop or slow enforcement of the individual or employer mandates.

The Trump administration will also decide on state Medicaid and other waiver applications, as well as on whether to defend ACA lawsuits, including House v. Burwell.