Healthcare Crisis 101 – Lesson 3
Do you wonder why the Democrats called ObamaCare the “Affordable Care Act” and not the “Affordable (Health) Care (INSURANCE) Act?”
What most Americans wanted was AFFORDABLE Health Care. What Washington promised them was affordable Health Care INSURANCE.
And OBAMACARE GAVE THEM NEITHER!
As I have said more than once, ObamaCare was the Democrats’ Plan B to do some if not all of the Left’s “Perennial Objectives”:
- To “nationalize” healthcare like the Europeans do it.
- To “Redistribute” Wealth.
- And to expand how much we depend on the government.
The concept (and its and lame execution) was always just another WELFARE PROGRAM.
And that is the reason the lame Republicans have so much trouble with it.
Conservative Republicans don’t want another WELFARE program. But they are afraid to call a spade a spade. And either “Establishment” (or so-called “Moderate”) Republicans do call it that… or they are stupidly afraid they won’t get re-elected if they cut off welfare.
The Democrats are socialists, liars, and crooks. But they are not completely stupid. They involved the Insurance Industry in the mess to protect against anyone trying to “fix” it.
Here are the principal features of ObamaCare and the Left’s related “Perennial Objectives:”
Objective #1: “Nationalize” Healthcare Like the Europeans Do It
Now they can force EVERYONE to buy health insurance or pay a fine.
Objective #2: To “Redistribute” Wealth
EVERYONE has to buy health insurance or pay a fine. This is simply another TAX. Chief Justice John Roberts even said so.
Objective #3: To Radically Expand How Much People Depend on the Government
Everyone has to have the SAME coverage determined by the Government and purchased on Government “Exchanges.” States have to expand Medicaid. People who can’t afford ObamaCare insurance premiums get taxpayer-funded “subsidies.” Coverage has to be made available to people who are already sick at the same cost.
Allow me to digress for a moment. I want to talk about “Preexisting Conditions.” I’ve spoken on this subject before. The Democrats claim that prior to ObamaCare, people with “preexisting conditions” were DENIED Health Care Insurance coverage.
FALSE.
They were not denied ALL coverage. It was only coverage for costs arising from the preexisting condition. And usually it was for a period of time. Such as one year. If the person were symptom-free for one year, the Insurance Companies would take a risk that the condition had abated.
As I have stressed in Healthcare Lessons 1 and 2, the reason ObamaCare is controversial is not really about Health Care. It’s not even about Health Care Insurance.
It is about WELFARE.
Now some of you have complimented my analysis but criticized my failure to offer “solutions.”
- Solutions.
REPEAL OBAMACARE. Get us back to Square One.
The problem with this solution is that Republicans lack the Senate votes to do that. Even IF all 52 of them were on board.
But there’s the “reconciliation process,” which only needs a simple majority. With that they CAN reverse every mandate, remove every tax and fee, and eliminate enough “regulations” to leave ObamaCare an empty shell.
This is what the Republicans SHOULD DO. But they WON’T.
Next, start down the familiar measures already identified to lower healthcare costs: tort reform, streamlining the FDA approval process, etc.
Next, start down the list of measures already identified to reduce Healthcare Insurance Premiums. Most of these measures are designed to increase competition between INSURANCE COMPANIES.
Next, Tax Reform. Put Employers and individuals on the same footing when it comes to Health Care and Health Care Insurance costs, to expand Health Savings Accounts, etc.
All these measures have been on the drawing board for years! THEN, AND ONLY THEN, do we start the debate about who in this Country should get FREE health care. (FREE meaning paid for by somebody else through taxes.) I am willing to concede that there are some people in this category.
This is, of course, a conversation about MEDICAID, which was just another Government Welfare Mess BEFORE ObamaCare. And it’s an even bigger one now. But we can sort through it – just not the way we are going now. The Swamp Dwellers need to stop the BS and face the music.
Or we need to get rid of some more of them, Democrat and Republican alike.
I hv read many of Ur posts. They are
L hv GOOD, REASONABLE, FAIR, OBJECTIVE points and I appreciated what I learned from them. I hope I have the general “topic” of the orig. article….I didn’t READ the entire thing. WHAT I wld like to Stress: BIG PHARMA is KILLING US ALL! Not only did Obama (and prev Pres’s help him), the TRUTH that I believe is at the GRASS ROOTS of our lousy healcare system. DON’T USE WESTERN, prescription medications, no matter how YEAH the TV commercials may look. WHy did they stop ALL cigarette advertising in ALL media…..TV, radio, billboards,magazines, etc! Becuz THE TOBACCO GIANTS finally got BEAT! Now, the majority of TV ads, are about/for/of/ pharmaceuticals by BIG PHARMA, the law suits that come up later…after 1,000s of people hv died, the increase in major health killers in USA…and people are dying sooner, quicker, never even having a CHANCE? And, never having a clue. Check out natural supplementation, naturalist M.D.s, acupuncture, chiropractors, AND NO MORE BIG PHARMAS’ OTC and prescription medst! CHECK IT OUT FOR URSELVES! U WILL LIVE LONGER! GOD BLESS!
Great article
I used to enjoy the informative articles you sent But now, since this most recent writer has taken over the posts, they’ve become more politically negative and less informative. I learn more more from the replies of individual responses than I do from your politically slanted soapbox. Please try to keep on track with the information for which this site was designed and leave your personal rhetoric out of it. I feel like I’ve just wasted my time watching CNN.
Great article
We need accountability not tort reform.
The FDA approval process is already streamlined by bribery from gigantic pharmaceutical companies we only get sick faster from sideeffects.
Nobody has mentioned that if we first started out by getting rid of the MILLIONS of illegal immigrants that are here using our HealthCare benefits that they aren’t entitled to, or pay for, that it would be an immediate relief to the entire system. NOT JUST OUR HEALTHCARE ! 25 million people can just walk into any hospital and receive FREE care, and all that’s required is that you are here illegally, no one can ask, and you don’t have the means to pay your own bill. We spend Billions every year on people who should be clogging up the emergency rooms in their HOME countries, but they come here and we get to foot the entire bill for someone who isn’t even supposed to be here? I think it’s time to start sending those medical bills back to the countries that are really responsible for their citizens being here in the first place. Why do you think that they would stay home for substandard medical care, when they can just come here to “THE LAND OF THE NEVER ENDING FREEBIE GIVEAWAY” ? All the while being encouraged by their own Governments to come here, and in Mexico’s case, spend over 50 millions dollars on programs to help them stay here illegally. Hell, they even posted the phone number for their embassy to provide them legal aide to avoid deportation !
Of course it’s not really free, everybody who actually pays out of pocket for insurance, or actually has a JOB,pays dearly.
Also, all the crying is coming from the people who stand to lose another yet another Government freebie.
I’m not in the least bit surprised that the people that are the problem are the ones complaining, are you?
All I know is, if your an illegal immigrant here, or a Democrat from the past Administration,
YOU CAN”T BE HELD ACCOUNTABLE FOR ANYTHING !
They just LAUGH AT YOUR STUPID LAWS !!!!!
Then rush out to enforce them on YOU………..
Blatant Corruption of our Constitution and we’re supposed to be so stupid as to just stand by and watch it all happen ?
It should not be possible to make a career out of serving in the congress. We need Absolute Term Limits. ONE six-year term in the Senate per lifetime. Perhaps extend the house term to four years and have ONE per lifetime. This way our “public servants” will not spend most of their time running for re-election and fund raising (soliciting bribes). They will be able to say what they believe and act on their consciences. Our nation was founded by farmers, businesspeople , craftsmen,doctors, and others who worked for a living. We have allowed the congress to become a class of mandarins and rulers. We need to be able to say “thanks for serving our state and nation for six years. We appreciate you. Now go back to your furniture store/accountancy/construction company/grocery store/etc. ” Our “public servants” AREN’T. We also need a way to FIRE any elected official if he or she is doing a shitty job. A rotating system of citizen-congress people cannot possibly do a worse job than what we have now.
Republicans and Democrats have one thing in common…they are politicians. Once a tax is passed there is no one who has the will to repeal it. They want to repurpose it but and use it for good…in their opinion.
Frank I object to an antichrist abortion promoting govt providing FREE health care at all. People forget Catholics (ie with priests and nuns) came up with hospitals in the first place. The St Jude hospital model works where people (not gov) give out the goodness of their heart and its 10X more efficient than any socialist redistribution program.
How was it that I eaked out a living at age 23 selling health policies to families on straight commissions in 1970?
The answer is the answer to today’s problem. It takes guts. Sacrifice . Hard work. American Ethics have fallen so low , there is now 50% on Freebies. It’s the new American Heroin. Addictive and Deadly.
If Patriots can’t roll it back, at least have the guts to refuse to Freebies yourself .
That really takes guts! Are you enough of a Hero to swim against the current? If not, you know why the Left is winning and will keep on wining!
Spot on Frank. I sold health insurance for several years as a straight. Commission licensed insurance agent starting in 1970 when I got out of the USAF at age 23 with a young wife and first child on the way. And no insurance to cover the birth. Boo. hoo. It was so unfair! Guess what? Like everyone else , we just had to figure it out and pay for somehow. And we did. So did millions of Americans every year. Now? It’s a govt boondoggle ! Once you give free govt freebies, it becomes a new “Right”. And it’s harder to kill than Black Mold and twice as deadly.
Pre-existing conditions don’t go away without treatment. Europeans don’t buy insurance, they have free medical treatment. Their doctors are paid a livable wage. Their prescriptions are free. Their surgeries are free. Our “non-profit” insurance companies pay their CEO’s millions and they fly in company owned jets. They pay lobbiest’s to keep our health care costs high. Our pharm’s charge Americans for their research and development. They sell their drugs to other countries for pennies on the dollar. We pay hundreds for the same med. But we can’t go to Canada to purchase. It’s against the law. If you worked and paid for your medical insurance for all those healthy years, you should expect to be able to afford to continue receiving medical coverage when you get older and illness of any kind strikes. Our LAWMAKERS should be included in every law they pass. Not be able to EXCLUDE themselves. Children get sick, they should not be denied medical treatment because they were born to poor parents. Obamacare is flawed. But the issues of cost and pre-existing conditions are valid for ALL AMERICANS.
P.P.S. By quoting The Beatles, I’m not saying that I’m some old-fashioned, peace-loving hippie. I’m not old enough to be a hippie. I merely recognize the wisdom of peace. Yes, we must fight evil, to end evil. Oddly enough, when people ask me: “What’s going on?’ or “What’s happening?”, I often answer: “The battle between Good and Evil.”
P.S. I still have a poster on our office wall from 9/11/01 which says UNITED WE STAND! Don’t we all think and believe that it’s time to be a one-party country again? End the arguments with your friends and family, God has given us a short time for life. Let’s enjoy it! As the music band The Beatles said: “Life is very short, and there’s no time for fussing and fighting my friends.”
The true NEED for the United States of America is to return to being a one-political-party nation, as the founders intended. One party is united, and united we stand. Two or more parties are divided, and divided we fall. Granted, the Earth is one planet. That is what the Founders knew also. Their vision was to unite the entire Earth —to end the tyranny of human against human. To return to: The Creator of All (commonly known as God) is the only true law; to reverse the mistaken belief that one human should control another human. The founders were no dumbies. They were some of the wisest men of their time. The founders started this country in order to ultimately free all humans. We have a two-party-system (yeah, there are more parties, but they are insignificant come election day) which was initially created by the British kingdom of the time, but the true originator of the division is the age-old divisor/deceiver of all time. There is only ONE Creator of All; thus, even though there are many religious belief systems, there is still only ONE Creator. The health care problem is a manufacture of the decievers — follow the money and you will find the source of the problem. Written in the Christian Bible is the statement: “FOR THE LOVE OF MONEY (not money by itself, money is only a tool) IS THE ROOT OF ALL EVIL.” This scripture warns us about greed. Greedy people are the evil, the deceivers. What’s the solution? GOD is LOVE. And, LOVE is the only law to obey.
Agree wholeheartedly with the article and everyone who commented. It is time to drain the swamp and make the politicians get the same as the average income tax payer. See the system get fixed then!
to show support for the President and tell our representatives in the Senate to support the President Fly our Flag. What would they do when Millions of Flags start flying.
I love my Obamacare. I now have insurance that was unobtainable before due to a pre-existing condition.
yes, the ACA has problems that need fixing, not repelling. You are playing fast and loose with 200,000 lives ( check the CBO). In 2026 between 22 to 24 million Americans will not have health insurance. Where will they go if a doctor is needed? The emergency room. There on one is required to pay for services. How will the hospital get Paid? From everyone else that has insurance, driving up the cost of coverage for everyone. Do you see a cycle yet? This cycle needs to be broken. We as Americans have some of the best medical care, but only if you have the money to pay for it. WE CAN DO BETTER!!!!
The only people with adequate coverage are the very rich, the very poor, and politicians. I see serious problems with this.
As a Conservative I struggled mightily to try to agree with the message you conveyed in your article. But when you leave your message to begin calling people names, you lose me and probably a lot of other people too. There are many associated with this issue that are attempting to make something complex out of something that should be and was at one time very simple. When I’ve seen that happen in the past I start looking for the inevitable slight of hand, It becomes much easier to hide the truth in all the insignificant banter that follows. I don’t care who said they were going to do what, when. Frankly it matters very little at this point since access to quality and affordable health care has been taken hostage at this point.
All the American people want is to be able to receive medical care when they need it and be able to pay the bill with a combination of their hard earned dollars and adequate health insurance. So far we have neither and the problem started a long time before President Obama was elected.
When insurance companies decided to reshape their business model from providing a quality policy we could afford to buy that would provide funds when we needed it to help us pay our medical bills, to being investment vehicles where people with money could store it for a purpose that had nothing to do with health care, that was the beginning of the end of affordable health care insurance in this country. And not just health care insurance, home, auto, life, the whole insurance ball of wax. Their principle interest turned to investors instead of the satisfied consumers they had built their business reputation on to begin with.
And please spare me the umpteenth regurgitation of the term pre-existing conditions. The term means absolutely nothing to the American People. It is an invention by insurance companies which gives them license to discriminate against people with chronic illness or people who are re-visited by a previous illness, from the rest of their insured and nothing more.
Care and concern for people who become sick which is what their original business model was, has now been replaced by service of investors. Their insured are now just impediments to the business model that now supports their primary function as investment companies. An entity they have become as a result of the exclusion of coverage they used to provide to their customers.
If the American People are ever going to have quality and affordable health care going forward, insurance companies cannot be a part of the solution. Let’s see how long they last when they not longer have their consumers to shear for the money they need to fill out their margins and play in the same arena as genuine investment companies and pay the same freight and play by the same rules they do.
And for those who believe that all we have to do to solve the problem of affordable health insurance is to reduce the cost of health care in general, get a grip. The cost of health care is like every other product or service to consumers. They all touch each other and are inter-connected and woven together to become what is the fabric of our national economy. You can’t change one without changing them all.
Criticizing Obama and his health care is so Fricking last year. We have bigger problems in the White House and if you can’t see that then I don’t know what will convince you.
I believe that a national health care for the entire country is needed and even the Republicans for the first time are discussing it. So please I know your site is an “alarmist” site but I think we need to bring it down a few levels. I do have respect for much of your prepping information and will continue to absorb and use your wisdom and experience in that area.
Respectfully,
erin kelle dean
We will never be able to have a healthy population as long as health care is paid by another (the government way). Look at how big the military industry is, thar is what government contracts built. The “affordable” care act is another step of many to remove the health of the public and keep people sick.
Why have you ignored the exorbitant drug prices that only Americans have to pay? BIG PHARMA has a stranglehold on our legislators! Are you afraid to speak up about this injustice?
I am so disgusted that so many people feel they are entitled to almost everything . It’s the same with these politicians. They feel they are entitled to too many freebies just being in office. We put them in office and yet they all feel they are entitled to. Free healthcare for everyone. If we must contribute the same amount for everyone. It’s a f…. Mess. If people were more concerned about a healthy lifestyle we wouldn’t need all this . Just take better care of yourself.
The Congress needs to come to realization that the ACA needs to be fixed. There are many good things in it. The GOP plans ignore what is wrong with it and just create a worse situation.
Strip all the political scum in Washington of their golden taxpayer funded golden health care for them and their families and make them use the health care they think is good enough for the citizens of America
This is one of the better comments I have seen. If congress had to use the same health care system the rest of us have to use they would fix it!!!
Additional comment to R Blitzer, Good beginning.
Add a Constitional amendment to require term limits, tie their raises to the CPI, have their health care the same as they vote for everyone else, 401Ks the same as the rest of us. See how they vote then
Politicians are like roaches – you can never get rid of them. Just put them in the same basket as the rest of us and see how fast they respond. As long as they are “protected” they have NO skin in the game
You have hit the nail on the head my friend.
You hit the nail on the head with your comments.. I agree wholeheartedle..
Congress crittters spend 90% of their time just raising money for the next campaign and 10% working on legislation as told by Sen. Ted Cruze.
All these Democrats and establishment Republicanso want is a one world socialist dictatorship.
It is my opinion that ALL congressmen/women and all Senators should be required to respond immediately as to why they think they should not be terminated from their position. Due to the fact they have set on their hands and done absolutely nothing to promote a better healthcare plan to present and vote for or against the plan. Its time for Democrats and Republicans to stop bickering and get to work for a change. They need to keep the people who voted them into office as there representatives. It seems to me most of our servants are only interested in stuffing their pockets with more and more money.
Maybe they will get the idea when 22million Hard working Americans descend on DC to burn it and them to the ground They have proven they are greedy incompetent scumbags taking care of themselves and to hell with the American people
I could not have said it any better.