'If I were a children's hospital, I'd be screaming from the rooftops'.

Andy Slavitt knows a thing or two about saving a sinking ship. In October 2013, Slavitt, then an executive at UnitedHealth Group's Optum division, was asked by the Obama administration to help rescue the falteringHealthCare.gov. As principal deputy administrator and then acting administrator at the CMS, Slavitt was unusually direct. Since leaving the agency this year, he's even more outspoken and is one ofthe most prominent voices opposing the GOP's efforts to repeal and replace the Affordable Care Act. He's strongly advocatedforsavingMedicaid and ensuring that the individual market remains accessible. Slavitt, now a senior adviser to the Avia Innovator Network, recently spoke with Modern Healthcare reporter Mara Lee about the ongoing repeal-and-replace debate. The following is an edited transcript.