For the most part, Democrats have avoided campaigning on Obamacare since it was passed. Most did not even want to discuss it. It was a loser topic, which has seen Democrats go from a wildly majority party before the 2010 midterms to massive losses at the federal, state, and local levels. They own this lock, stock, and barrel. So, what do they want to do now?
(Washington Times) After six years of resisting legislative changes to Obamacare, President Obama and Democrats now say they’re ready to work on fixes to the massive health law — so long as they expand the federal government’s role in health care.
With Republicans about to control all the levers of political power and moving to repeal the Affordable Care Act, Democrats are searching for ways to defend the law.
For many of them, that means admitting to flaws in the six-year-old law, and saying they can work with the GOP on fixes — as long as they don’t undermine the central achievements of Obamacare.
Mr. Obama said that means boosting the amount of money the government doles out to help people buy health insurance, and offering government-run plans to compete with the private sector.
“I’d sign on to a Republican plan that said we’re going to give more subsidies to people to make it even cheaper, and we’re going to have a public option where there isn’t an option,†the president said Friday in an interview with the Vox media outlet. “Here’s the problem: I don’t think that’s the thing that they want to do.â€
In other words, they want to double down on Obamacare. The same thing that has seen their party’s fortunes decline precipitously.
Obama did get one thing correct: there should be no repeal without a plan to replace. I know some have said “just toast it and we’ll go back to the way it was.” It’s too late for that. That time was the 2012 elections. Now, there needs to be a plan to make sure people can obtain health insurance if they want it. Of course, lots of healthy people do not want it (their mistake, IMO). And the GOP is going to have to deal with those who received insurance via the Medicaid expansion, which accounted for a majority chunk of the new enrollees.
As far as Obama seeing it? He broke it, he doesn’t get to be involved now. He’s also on his way out the door. Soon to be inaugurated President Trump can, via executive order, trash so many components which were created by HHS. The contraception mandate, the work hours requirement, the number of people in companies requirement, and so forth, can all be sent to the ash heap with the wave of a pen.
The best thing the GOP can do is implement a few rules while relaxing the Federal government’s control of health insurance and healthcare. Why do we need them to be involved in our decisions? Get out of the way and mind your own business.
President Obama said if the Republicans could come up with a plan demonstrably better than the ACA, he would support Repeal and Replace! He advocates that all Dems also support a demonstrably better plan.
The US spends twice as much per person on total healthcare costs than other advanced nations, yet our healthcare is not two times better. In fact, our inability to assure that citizens have access to healthcare is embarrassing (except to Ayn Rand libertarianists). It appears that efficiencies in the ACA have slowed US healthcare inflation (which was one of the objectives).
Why do we need them to be involved in our decisions?
Because we want them to pay for it. The most popular parts of Obamacare have always been people getting someone else to pay for their bills, whether that is the chronically sick (pre-existing conditions), the aged (Medicare) or the poor (Medicaid). It was always about wealth transfer to buy votes. Without the law, everyone goes back to paying their own bills. And since most people are stupid, they thought Getting to stay on their parents insurance until they were 26 meant “free”. They thought employers providing insurance meant “free”. They thought no denial for pre-existing conditions meant “free” instead of paying through the nose for premiums instead of paying through the nose for services. And the silly little munchkins thought adding $50 bucks worth of “free” birth control every month wouldn’t raise their premiums by exactly $50 a month.
Jeffery, do you mean healthcare costs or health insurance costs when you state the following? They are not the same thing.
I’d like to point out every citizen has “access to health care” even if he doesn’t pay for health insurance. It’s the law and has been the law. So what do you mean by the following?:
“Efficiency” and “ACA” are two terms that have no business in the same sentence.
I doubt a health insurance plan has much effect on the inflation of the healthcare industry. Do car insurance rates effect the price of cars or homeowners effect the price of housing?
Loose Shoes has said a lot of stuff in 8 years, most of it bullshit and outright lies.
11 more days until the cattle cars and re-education camps, hey little guy?
Rachel Maddow has dibs on the top bunk.
Be afraid, very afraid.
Hoagie,
Total healthcare costs per person. Includes premiums, gov’t expenditures, drugs, clinics, lab tests, out of pocket, etc. Total spending on healthcare divided by number of people. The US spends twice about twice as much as Australia, Belgium, Canada, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, Germany, Holland, Israel, Japan, etc etc.
Our “access” to healthcare often means last minute trips to an ER, where those who can’t pay are treated as second class citizens.
The ACA is not the only reason that healthcare inflation is slowing, but is likely an important one. So yes, the ACA has introduced economic efficiencies into the system.
Why do you think Australia, Belgium, Canada etc can guarantee all their citizens access to affordable healthcare but the US cannot? Israel, no communist country, spends one third as much per person compared to the US.
Our healthcare system exacts the equivalent of a $1 trillion/yr “tax” on us working stiffs, a “tax” transferred to highly compensated individuals and institutions, e.g., doctors, IP attorneys, drug company execs and investors, hospitals, clinics, insurance companies… That’s an extra $3000 a year per person that other nations’ citizens don’t pay – and they typically have better healthcare and health! We should learn from France, Japan, Israel, Germany and others. Healthcare is a cash cow for the wealthy.
Why do we limit the number of foreign doctors practicing in the US? It keeps dr’s pay high. It’s absolutely an anti-free market approach.
Commenter Loose Condoms (even the XS size!) says a lot of bullshit, but never anything interesting.