Obama touts healthcare legacy in first visit to White House at new EO signing for Obamacare

SUMMARY: Obama returns to the White House to promote healthcare, with focus on Biden's next steps to improve the Affordable Care Act

By Mona Austin

WASHINGTON -- (The Slice): Former President Barack Obama was behind the podium in the White House East Room once again on Tuesday stating it "felt good" to be back.

The "rock star" leader made a one-day-only appearance in celebration of his legacy legislation, the Affordable Care Act, nicknamed "Obamacare" by the GOP.

Obama reunited with Pres. Joe Biden at 1600 Penn for the first time since the Biden Administration took office. This visit came five years after he finished his second term in office and welcomed former Pres. Donald Trump to the residence in January of 2017. As the father of the ACA, Obama was invited to an Executive Order signing to bolster actions intended to improve the current offering and further expand Medicaid.

Biden, when he began to speak joked that when he met Obama for lunch they did not know which leader should sit where. He went on to pour praise on Obama for his vision to make healthcare a right, not a privilege for all Americans.

At the time of the initial bill signing -- not realizing he was near a hot mic-- then Vice Pres. Biden famously whispered to Obama, "This is a big f**king deal."

“The Affordable Care Act has been called a lot of things but Obamacare is the most fitting," Biden said turning the moniker into a positive reference. (Some Republicans previously politicized the non-partisan legislation by calling it by keeping the Democrats name attached to it. )

Mr. Obama may be one of few leaders in the brotherhood of presidents to experience this personal show of respect from a successor. The invitation placed him in the spotlight as the visionary behind the game-changing legislation that secured healthcare for all. In political circles it is more common to give the political party credit for accomplishments rather than thank the leader publicly. This gesture may be a testament to what Press Secretary Jen Psaki called a real friendship, not a Washington one.

Said Obama as he listed the progress he and the current president shared: "Joe Biden and I did a lot to get there. We helped save the global economy. Made record investments in clean energy. We put guard rails on our financial systems. We helped turned the auto industry around. Repealed 'Don't Ask Don't Tell,' but nothing makes me prouder than providing protections and better healthcare for millions of people around this country."

Considered the crown jewel of the 44th president's political career, the ACA was signed into law on March 23, 2010, providing medical insurance to millions of Americans who never had it. “The ACA was an example of why you run for office in the first place,” Obama added, calling it the “high point of my time here.”

In turn, Pres. Joe Biden signed an executive order to expand the bounds of Medicaid and remove the "family glitch" out of the ACA. The White House says 5 million Americans are affected by the “family glitch” which makes it impossible for many families to use the premium tax credit to purchase health care plans from the ACA Marketplace. Through Biden's EO, this problem will be solved by offering financial assistance to family members on a plan who pay more than 10% of their income for insurance.

The event comes on the heels of the 12th anniversary of the start of the ACA.

After all three leaders spoke, Biden, signed a new Executive Order that

Vice President Kamala Harris addressed the necessity of all states being compliant with the healthcare law saying those refusing Medicaid expansion are playing "petty politics." "Expanding Medicaid coverage means reducing the number of women who die in childbirth," commented Vice Pres. Harris who has taken on the mantle for women's health. According to the White House "nearly 4 million Americans continue to be locked out of Medicaid expansion because they reside in 1 of the 12 States that have failed to adopt the ACA’s Medicaid expansion." Those non-compliant states -- Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Kansas, Mississippi, North Carolina, South Carolina, South Dakota, Tennessee, Texas, Wisconsin, and Wyoming -- represent the remaining 9% of uninsured Americans. (Data: Urban Institute's Health Insurance Policy Simulation Model.)

WATCH: President Barack Obama speaks at the White House in first visit since leaving office

Some of the highlights of the new provisions include:

- Easier enrollment at healthcare.gov

- Tackling the maternal health crisis

- Better access to home care for the elderly

- Expanded access to mental health care

- Most of all, lower premiums for insurance coverage

Biden said the Affordable Care Act is the most consequential legislation since Medicare and Medicaid were created in 1965.

Should Congress quarrel with the upgrades in Biden's directive, the current healthcare financial assistance plan that applied for COVID relief will expire at the end of the year. To sing up for coverage go to the Marketplace at www.healthcare.gov.