I guess I
am because it’s not called Obamacare, but I guess that is just nitpicking.
Frankly I do not think the health care reforms went near far enough, I much
sooner have a system like Canada’s or those in Europe. They are all cheaper and
give better care for the majority people. Rich folk can always get better
whatever.
But there
are those, generally of a conservative persuasion, that think it is demonic and
will destroy civilization as I know it, thus it is going to the supreme court
to determine its constitutionality. And then there are the many claims of all
those who have been hurt by “Obamacare.”
Brad
Friedman writes a blog I regularly read and he says he has lots of folk who
just love to write and condemn his liberal leanings. He decided to put on
twitter an opportunity for all those who have been hurt by Obamacare, to
respond and tell how it has had a detrimental effect on their lives. The
response was zero, nobody reported negative effects of Obamacare. He figures
that is because there are no negative effects, just those in the minds who
oppose it.
Obamacare
is not a government takeover of the health care system despite what Rush Limbaugh,
Rick Santorum and the like say. In fact, the “individual mandate” in the ACA
was Republican plan to begin with. A single payer system would be better but we
have what we have. It’s like a kid with who wants a toy but when another kid
gets it, he says it’s a bad stupid toy. Friedman points to the “Volsky’s ThinkProgress piece as an example of this; a 51 member
Republican coalition who used to support a federal government individual health
care mandate before they didn’t.”
We still
live in the only developed country in the world that does not see health care
as a right of citizens rather than an area to make money. Profit based systems
are inferior to public systems. Do the research. It is a moral disgrace.
When asked about major specific provisions of Obamacare, polling consistently shows Americans favor most of those provisions by wide margins, while claiming they disapprove of the plan 'overall'. Which shows how effective a well-funded misinformation campaign can be. Lots of people hate Obamacare but everyone seems to really like what's in it.
ReplyDeleteThe risk here is on the GOP. There is a serious risk to them that they could succeed in bringing down Obamacare in the courts. It won't take long before people wake up from their fox-induced fog and realize the consequences of that. It's a lose-lose situation for them and they don't even see it.
More like an accurate information campaign pointing out the facts of Obama's attempt to ruin healthcare. Those who disapprove of the plan overall are seeing the forest for the trees, and have likely noticed that despite its "good" ideas, it has caused insurance premiums to soar while swelling the ranks of the uninsured.
DeleteAs for the individual "trees" of the Obamacare forest, we can look at those, and start with the individual mandate. Check the Washington Post Poll (left-wing media, not FOX) which shows a majority wanting the individual mandate thrown out of the plan.
"It won't take long before people wake up from their fox-induced fog and realize the consequences of that."
Consequences such as lower premiums and more people insured. We can live with such consequences.
Also a single payer system would not be "better", but is the worst possible solution. Stalinizing the system: centralizing all control and authority. We need many more players, not just one. Reform should be done with the aim of decentralization and increasing competition.
ReplyDeleteSince when is a monopoly a good thing?
for dmarks:The healthcare system in this country is already "ruined" in that it is very expensive and does not cover all citizens. The Health Care Reforms a.k.a. Obamacare helps address those issues. Give me data for you rising costs claims. As to single payer systems they just work and work better as claimed in my article. Monopolies in the marketplace are not good, but that where we head without healthcare reforms. Government steps in when it is bad for the country. Take look at the post office which provides a service for our citizens. Then greed powers sell of the profitable parts to private enterprise such and FedEx and UPS and then we wonder why the post office runs in the red.
ReplyDeleteIn regards to this in your conclusion: "Profit based systems are inferior to public systems"
DeleteWhat about non profit private systems? Then you get rid of the profit problem, and the problem of fascistic centralized rationed care 'one size fits hardly anyone' single payer.
"The Health Care Reforms a.k.a. Obamacare helps address those issues"
Yet, under Obamacare, the ranks of the uninsured have been swelling, and the costs of insurance premiums have soared. How can this be seen as an improvement? Especially in regards to the two problems you mentioned: the cost and coverage. Higher expense and fewer citizens covered have been the result.
"Then greed powers sell of the profitable parts to private enterprise such and FedEx and UPS and then we wonder why the post office runs in the red."
Actually, the post office runs in the red because they haven't been able to pay a fair value for the work and pensions.
FedEx and UPS were never "sold off" of the post office. These are services that arose in areas where the USPS did not have a monopoly.
Monopolies in the marketplace are bad. Government-controlled monopolies are no better.
As regards " Profit based systems are inferior to public systems." There are examples in Daniel Pink's 'Drive-the
ReplyDeleteSurprizing Truth About What Motivates Us'. For example,
Microsoft's Encarta (the for profit web encyclopedia) had to be taken off the market because it simply could not compete with the free access unpaid contributor Wikepedia.
Many, including large corporations use other open source
software like Linux, Firefox and Apache. Any one with a relative in nursing home care that has saw the building and personnel go from Church or other non-profit to the typical
business model would have to agree. As for the state of US
healthcare, by every measure-cost, effiency, results it is
a disaster; was before 'Obamacare'. The system bleeds upwards into profits and downward into those who have no
insurance coverage. As long as politics divides folks, there will be no fix.