ACA Not So Affordable

[Dashinka 24,597]

I realize this is an opinion piece, but it is hard to argue the rising cost of Obamacare. I know, as the piece points out all the bad things making liberals and progressives look bad are anecdotal, and the three years predicted for the ACA to stabilize may take a few more, but it seems clear this law (passed solely by Democrats) is not doing what was intended.

"Hillary Clinton admits shes running to extend the Obama legacy, and so far shes had a free ride in defending it. She hasnt even had to explain the increasingly obvious failures of ObamaCare to deliver the affordable insurance that Democrats promised.

The Affordable Care Act is now rolling into its fourth year, and even liberals are starting to concede that the insurance exchanges are in distress and Congress may have to reopen the law. Premiums are high and soaring; insurers have booked multimillion-dollar losses and are terminating plans; and the customer pool is smaller, older and less healthy than the official projections."

http://www.wsj.com/articles/obamacare-sicker-shock-1471042481

Edited August 13, 2016 by Bill & Katya

[OriZ 3,157]

"Hillary Clinton admits shes running to extend the Obama legacy, and so far shes had a free ride in defending it.

That right there, is enough of a reason not to vote for this hack.

[smilesammich 10,727]

single payer, let's get it right.

[The Nature Boy 7,659]

single payer, let's get it right.

Oddly enough I agree. Repeal Obama care with no better plan presented is nuts

[Dashinka 24,597]

single payer, let's get it right.

Can we afford single payer?

[smilesammich 10,727]

Can we afford single payer?

yes.

Oddly enough I agree. Repeal Obama care with no better plan presented is nuts

how reasonable of you

[John Miller 761]

The way I see it is that Obamacare is paving the way for single payer. Obamacare was an attempt (based on the Heritage Foundation's concept from the 1990's) to make the market based health insurance system work for everyone and it simply isn't happening. It thus proved rather impressively that there is no market based solution to be had. And that is making the argument for single payer stronger than ever. Even our resident middle of the road guy is seeing the light now.

[Sousuke 1,214]

The issue is that healthcare unlike other products cannot be run in a capitalist manner. You have a population that has X demand that will not adapt /adjust using market forces.

I think the US in a way is very lucky to have seen how other countries have developed their systems and learn from their mistakes. Personally I think we need an NHS lite. Where everyone gets basic care, but you probably would want supplemental insurance.

As an example, dental would not be a part of the program.

Edited August 13, 2016 by Sousuke

[John Miller 761]

The issue is that healthcare unlike other products cannot be run in a capitalist manner. You have a population that has X demand that will not adapt /adjust using market forces.

I think the US in a way is very lucky to have seen how other countries have developed their systems and learn from their mistakes. Personally I think we need an NHS lite. Where everyone gets basic care, but you probably would want supplemental insurance.

As an example, dental would not be a part of the program.

Sounds about right except that I don't think you need to socialize the service delivery as NHS does (similar to the VA model, if you will). Many industrialized nations have health care systems built on private service providers with varying forms of socialized insurance models. Medicare is a model very close to that with a single payer and it is very, very successful. It should simply made available to everyone. You could even let it compete against the market by adding this enrollment option to each and every state healthcare exchange. Pretty sure Medicare would come out on top and you'd have your single payer system without any need to reinvent the wheel.

[Merle 458]

Can we afford single payer?

Or, can we afford single payer and let people sue the heck out of doctors whenever they fell they have been wronged in any way?

[John Miller 761]

Not the TORT reform red herring again. There are actual issues to be resolved. TORT reform is a very, very minor one. It would yield less than 3% according to studies that have been undertaken on the issue. Start with fee for service, there's a lot of savings there.

The notion has lived on despite copious evidence that that the so-called defensive medicine practiced by doctors merely to stave off lawsuits accounts for, at best, 2% to 3% of U.S. healthcare costs. As for "frivolous lawsuits," they're a problem that exists mostly in the minds of conservatives and the medical establishment.

A new study led by Michael B. Rothberg of the Cleveland Clinic and published in the Journal of the American Medical Association aimed to measure how much defensive medicine there is, really, and how much it costs. The researchers' conclusion is that defensive medicine accounts for about 2.9% of healthcare spending. In other words, out of the estimated $2.7-trillion U.S. healthcare bill, defensive medicine accounts for $78 billion.

http://www.latimes.com/business/hiltzik/la-fi-mh-another-study-shows-why-tort-reform--20140919-column.html

[Merle 458]

Not the TORT reform red herring again. There are actual issues to be resolved. TORT reform is a very, very minor one. It would yield less than 3% according to studies that have been undertaken on the issue. Start with fee for service, there's a lot of savings there.

Wow only 78 billiion, thats nothing! Can people sue doctor's like crazy in the socialist utopia you hail from?

[yuna628 9,680]

I'm glad to see there is common ground here. The ACA has made it affordable for only some, to the point sometimes it seems a joke. My healthcare premium is higher than ever, but the services offered are worse than ever. One good thing is that no one can be denied and if we decide to have kids there's decent coverage there.. but not much else. Based on the numerous questions about the ACA on this forum from immigrants, it seems it's never fully explained to those participating or wondering if they can participate. I also feel rather agitated whenever someone complains about their very low premium, when over here the cost is bleeding money from my pockets.

Single payer? It seems like it would be lovely. But, the resistance is simply too strong. The concept of ''I don't want to pay for someone else's stuff'' mentality.. when I'm not even quite sure they understand how it (or the ACA) works to begin with. To be fair though, this was based on a GOP concept from old days long gone.. some kind of weird mentality that everything works great with more capitalism involved... I don't think such notions apply well when it comes to health care. One of the worst buzzkills with the GOP is that they have no fresh ideas of how to fix the actual problem. Repeal and replace became such a tired excuse, and has serious consequences. But medicare has it's own problems too. When mom had her cancer diagnosis medicare + supplement came through, but when dad needs extremely costly not covered medication so he goes without is troubling.

Drug companies also have a great deal of culpability here.. no one ever seems to hold that accountable.

[John Miller 761]

Wow only 78 billiion, thats nothing! Can people sue doctor's like crazy in the socialist utopia you hail from?

Total US healthcare expenditure is just south of $3 trillion a year. In that picture, $78 billion is nothing but a drop in the bucket. But keep focusing on this straw man. The profiteers of the industry count on that.

[Dashinka 24,597]

Total US healthcare expenditure is just south of $3 trillion a year. In that picture, $78 billion is nothing but a drop in the bucket. But keep focusing on this straw man. The profiteers of the industry count on that.

I don't know, 78 billion seems like a lot to me. Will the US population be happy with the longer wait times on par with Canada or the VA? Personally, I think the current health insurance including the ACA is horrible. I always ask my doctor what the cost is if I pay cash since I rarely come close to my deductible. Not sure the Feds can do it better as they do not have a very good track record.