Republicans and the Affordable Care Act

[OohPooPahDoo]

Obama was reelected, and the ACA will stay. I would like to see the GOP start working to address the flaws in Obamacare since replacing it with RomneyCare is out( not that I was looking forward to that option either).

What do you think are the odds that they will work to amend it and stop wasting time and tax payer money trying to scrap it? Also, thoughts on what the 1st change to the ACA should be?

? ObamaCare IS RomneyCare!

 

[Meister]

Obama was reelected, and the ACA will stay. I would like to see the GOP start working to address the flaws in Obamacare since replacing it with RomneyCare is out( not that I was looking forward to that option either).

What do you think are the odds that they will work to amend it and stop wasting time and tax payer money trying to scrap it? Also, thoughts on what the 1st change to the ACA should be?

? ObamaCare IS RomneyCare!

It's a fed Vs state thing.....not a one size fits all. The states have input....as it should be

 

[ScreamingEagle]

Obama was reelected, and the ACA will stay. I would like to see the GOP start working to address the flaws in Obamacare since replacing it with RomneyCare is out( not that I was looking forward to that option either).

What do you think are the odds that they will work to amend it and stop wasting time and tax payer money trying to scrap it? Also, thoughts on what the 1st change to the ACA should be?

? ObamaCare IS RomneyCare!

no it isn't.....if you didn't like RomneyCare you could move to another state and not buy health insurance....

 

[Wacky Quacky]

I'll bite.

I'm an either/or kind of guy when it comes to healthcare. Either we need full blown socialist/communist universal healthcare, or government needs to get completely out of it and back the fuck off. These half assed measures they keep vomiting out are only making the situation worse.

Personally, I support universal healthcare. I think it's bullshit that some one who plays by the rules, works hard, stays healthy, and pays for their own health insurance, can come down with a horribly debilitating disease and they loose everything.

I'm an either or person myself.

I think we need to either repeal the law Reagan passed that forces hospitals to care for the sick, even if they can't pay, and accept that if you get sick and can't pay you either die, or seek help from a charity.

Or we demand that every American buy their own insurance and be responsible for their own healthcare costs.

i think being "either or" is being pretty shortsighted.....all one really needs to do is look at Universal healthcare history in other countries similar to the U.S......Great Britain for example....

the U.S. has always taken care of the poor and sick....it is only since we have taken on the poor of the whole world we are having problems....and Obamacare is not going to solve that...

Great Britain represents all that is good and bad with centralized, single-payer health care systems. Health care spending is fairly low (7.5% of GDP) and very equitable. Long wait lists for treatment, however are endemic and rationing pervades the system. Patients have little choice of provider and little access to specialists.

Percent Insured. ~100%

Funding. Great Britain has a single payer system funded by general revenues. With any centralized system, avoiding deficits is difficult. In 2006, Great Britain had a £700 million deficit despite the fact that health care spending increased by £43 billion over five years.

Private Insurance. 10% of Britons have private health insurance. Private health insurance replicates the coverage provided by the NHS, but gives patients access to higher quality care, and reduced waiting times.

Physician Compensation. Unlike in the case of other single payer systems such as Norway, most physicians and nurses are mostly government employees. In 2004, the NHS negotiated lower salaries for doctors in exchange for reduced work hours. Few physicians are available at night or on weekends. Because of low compensation, there is a significant shortage of specialists.

Physician Choice. Patients have very little physician choice. However, under the experimental London Patient Choice Project, patients waiting more than six months for treatment will be offered a choice of four different treatment providers.

Copayment/Deductibles. There are no deductibles and almost no copayments except for small copayments for prescription drugs, as well as for optical and dental care.

Waiting Times. Waiting lists are a huge problem in Great Britain. Some examples: 750,000 are on waiting lists for hospital admission; 40% of cancer patients are never able to see an oncologist; there is explicit rationing for services such as kidney dialysis, open heart surgery and care for the terminally ill. Further, minimum waiting times have been instituted to reduce costs. “A top-flight hospital like Suffolk Est PCT was ordered to impose a minimum waiting time of at least 122 days before patients could be treated or the hospital would lose a portion of its funding.”

Benefits Covered. The NHS system offers comprehensive coverage. Because of rationing, care might not be as easy to get as advertised. Terminally ill patients may be denied treatment. David Cameron has proposed that the NHS refuse treatment to smokers or the obese.

Health Care Around the World: Great Britain « Healthcare Economist

Best thing about Britain's healthcare though, you can opt out if you want private insurance instead of government healthcare.

Every program needs to be like that, from healthcare to social security. You should have the ability to opt out.

 

[dblack]

Also, thoughts on what the 1st change to the ACA should be?

I'm not a Republican, but I can't really think of any small changes that would matter much. It's the core of it, the fundamental assumptions it relies on, that I'm opposed to.

If you want a list:

1. Get rid of the mandate on individuals to give insurance companies their money.

2. Get rid of the mandate on employers to give insurance companies their money.

3. Get rid of the government subsidies that will give insurance companies our money.

4. Make participation voluntary.

Once we've take care of those, we can start coming up with something sane.

 

[WillowTree]

Obama was reelected, and the ACA will stay. I would like to see the GOP start working to address the flaws in Obamacare since replacing it with RomneyCare is out( not that I was looking forward to that option either).

What do you think are the odds that they will work to amend it and stop wasting time and tax payer money trying to scrap it? Also, thoughts on what the 1st change to the ACA should be?

? ObamaCare IS RomneyCare!

Romney care did not steal 716 billion dollars from the old people. Now go pat you ass somewhere else.

 

[Koios]

public option won't work, you cannot afford it because 47% of this nation leech and do not pay a share.

It would actually save tax-payers, from a cost standpoint, for those whose policies will now be paid by the government, since they (we) have to buy insurance from the for profit sector. For those who would not qualify for government-paid insurance, it would merely be an option.

bull malarkey

Huh uh, WillowTree, it's not. So there.

Wow; the rousing debate here is so cerebral I'm in utter awe.

 

[Mad Scientist]

There are PROBLEMS with the ACA?

You all were jumping for joy when it passed. Tell us what's wrong with it.

I assume you mean "you" as in "dem dirty liberals" and not me specifically?

Oh now yer' trying to backpedal? And now that you mention it, you ARE one of "dem dirty liberals"

You gonna' say you voted for Romney?

You can't weasel out of this.

 

[peach174]

I'm an either or person myself.

I think we need to either repeal the law Reagan passed that forces hospitals to care for the sick, even if they can't pay, and accept that if you get sick and can't pay you either die, or seek help from a charity.

Or we demand that every American buy their own insurance and be responsible for their own healthcare costs.

i think being "either or" is being pretty shortsighted.....all one really needs to do is look at Universal healthcare history in other countries similar to the U.S......Great Britain for example....

the U.S. has always taken care of the poor and sick....it is only since we have taken on the poor of the whole world we are having problems....and Obamacare is not going to solve that...

Great Britain represents all that is good and bad with centralized, single-payer health care systems. Health care spending is fairly low (7.5% of GDP) and very equitable. Long wait lists for treatment, however are endemic and rationing pervades the system. Patients have little choice of provider and little access to specialists.

Percent Insured. ~100%

Funding. Great Britain has a single payer system funded by general revenues. With any centralized system, avoiding deficits is difficult. In 2006, Great Britain had a £700 million deficit despite the fact that health care spending increased by £43 billion over five years.

Private Insurance. 10% of Britons have private health insurance. Private health insurance replicates the coverage provided by the NHS, but gives patients access to higher quality care, and reduced waiting times.

Physician Compensation. Unlike in the case of other single payer systems such as Norway, most physicians and nurses are mostly government employees. In 2004, the NHS negotiated lower salaries for doctors in exchange for reduced work hours. Few physicians are available at night or on weekends. Because of low compensation, there is a significant shortage of specialists.

Physician Choice. Patients have very little physician choice. However, under the experimental London Patient Choice Project, patients waiting more than six months for treatment will be offered a choice of four different treatment providers.

Copayment/Deductibles. There are no deductibles and almost no copayments except for small copayments for prescription drugs, as well as for optical and dental care.

Waiting Times. Waiting lists are a huge problem in Great Britain. Some examples: 750,000 are on waiting lists for hospital admission; 40% of cancer patients are never able to see an oncologist; there is explicit rationing for services such as kidney dialysis, open heart surgery and care for the terminally ill. Further, minimum waiting times have been instituted to reduce costs. “A top-flight hospital like Suffolk Est PCT was ordered to impose a minimum waiting time of at least 122 days before patients could be treated or the hospital would lose a portion of its funding.”

Benefits Covered. The NHS system offers comprehensive coverage. Because of rationing, care might not be as easy to get as advertised. Terminally ill patients may be denied treatment. David Cameron has proposed that the NHS refuse treatment to smokers or the obese.

Health Care Around the World: Great Britain « Healthcare Economist

Best thing about Britain's healthcare though, you can opt out if you want private insurance instead of government healthcare.

Every program needs to be like that, from healthcare to social security. You should have the ability to opt out.

Only the rich in Britain can afford private health care insurance.

 

[Trajan]

The government shoul just take the industry over completely, conscript doctors and give all forms of healthcare for free.

have you ever heard the saying; if the government managed a desert there would be a shortage of sand?

 

[Avorysuds]

It doesn't do enough to bring down costs.

So let's revisit the idea of a public option.

So that costs can explode even more?

The problem with ACA is that it is a top down approach that tramples on the needs of various segments. And that's just the beginning.
The law is a disaster. It is what happens when one party shoves through Congress by hook and by crook a poorly conceived poorly executed piece of legislation because they have convinced themselves that they are the ones we've been waiting for.
There is no fixing the bill. It is fundamentally flawed. Nothing could fix it besides repeal.

LOL, a whole lot of text that actually says nothing. Shocking!

Glad to see we agree on what the 2,000 pages that made up Obamacare was.

 

[ScreamingEagle]

I'm an either or person myself.

I think we need to either repeal the law Reagan passed that forces hospitals to care for the sick, even if they can't pay, and accept that if you get sick and can't pay you either die, or seek help from a charity.

Or we demand that every American buy their own insurance and be responsible for their own healthcare costs.

i think being "either or" is being pretty shortsighted.....all one really needs to do is look at Universal healthcare history in other countries similar to the U.S......Great Britain for example....

the U.S. has always taken care of the poor and sick....it is only since we have taken on the poor of the whole world we are having problems....and Obamacare is not going to solve that...

Great Britain represents all that is good and bad with centralized, single-payer health care systems. Health care spending is fairly low (7.5% of GDP) and very equitable. Long wait lists for treatment, however are endemic and rationing pervades the system. Patients have little choice of provider and little access to specialists.

Percent Insured. ~100%

Funding. Great Britain has a single payer system funded by general revenues. With any centralized system, avoiding deficits is difficult. In 2006, Great Britain had a £700 million deficit despite the fact that health care spending increased by £43 billion over five years.

Private Insurance. 10% of Britons have private health insurance. Private health insurance replicates the coverage provided by the NHS, but gives patients access to higher quality care, and reduced waiting times.

Physician Compensation. Unlike in the case of other single payer systems such as Norway, most physicians and nurses are mostly government employees. In 2004, the NHS negotiated lower salaries for doctors in exchange for reduced work hours. Few physicians are available at night or on weekends. Because of low compensation, there is a significant shortage of specialists.

Physician Choice. Patients have very little physician choice. However, under the experimental London Patient Choice Project, patients waiting more than six months for treatment will be offered a choice of four different treatment providers.

Copayment/Deductibles. There are no deductibles and almost no copayments except for small copayments for prescription drugs, as well as for optical and dental care.

Waiting Times. Waiting lists are a huge problem in Great Britain. Some examples: 750,000 are on waiting lists for hospital admission; 40% of cancer patients are never able to see an oncologist; there is explicit rationing for services such as kidney dialysis, open heart surgery and care for the terminally ill. Further, minimum waiting times have been instituted to reduce costs. “A top-flight hospital like Suffolk Est PCT was ordered to impose a minimum waiting time of at least 122 days before patients could be treated or the hospital would lose a portion of its funding.”

Benefits Covered. The NHS system offers comprehensive coverage. Because of rationing, care might not be as easy to get as advertised. Terminally ill patients may be denied treatment. David Cameron has proposed that the NHS refuse treatment to smokers or the obese.

Health Care Around the World: Great Britain « Healthcare Economist

Best thing about Britain's healthcare though, you can opt out if you want private insurance instead of government healthcare.

Every program needs to be like that, from healthcare to social security. You should have the ability to opt out.

the result being a two-tier system.....a good one and a bad one....

i'd like to know why the Amish are exempt from Obamacare.....but not other religions like the Catholics who protest paying for abortion....?

 

[Mad Scientist]

It would actually save tax-payers, from a cost standpoint, for those whose policies will now be paid by the government, since they (we) have to buy insurance from the for profit sector.

Wow; the rousing debate from you is so cerebral I'm in utter awe.

 

[OohPooPahDoo]

Obama was reelected, and the ACA will stay. I would like to see the GOP start working to address the flaws in Obamacare since replacing it with RomneyCare is out( not that I was looking forward to that option either).

What do you think are the odds that they will work to amend it and stop wasting time and tax payer money trying to scrap it? Also, thoughts on what the 1st change to the ACA should be?

? ObamaCare IS RomneyCare!

It's a fed Vs state thing.....not a one size fits all. The states have input....as it should be

We aren't talking about T-shirts. The respective legislative bodies in both Mass. and the U.S. as a whole each decided that RomneyCare was the best way.


Mitt Romney obviously thought Romney was a good idea for the nation before he flip flopped:

07/30/09 - Mr. President, What's the Rush? | Mitt Romney Central

The federal government sends an estimated $42 billion to hospitals that care for the poor: Use those funds instead to help the poor buy private insurance, as we did.

....
This Republican is proud to be the first governor to insure all his state’s citizens. Other Republicans such as Rep. Paul Ryan and Sens. Bob Bennett and John McCain, among others, have proposed their own plans

Guess what the Bob Bennet plan had in it? A PERSONAL FUCKING MANDATE.

 

[syrenn]

I think that this will prove to be a big mess with the people when all the taxes are realized starting next year and the following year. People have forgotten that little bit of the ACA.

You mean the for the people who PAY federal taxes need to worry about it. The ones who just suck off the system and not pay a cent will be laughing their asses off while they take advantage of their new perks.

 

[syrenn]

Obama was reelected, and the ACA will stay. I would like to see the GOP start working to address the flaws in Obamacare since replacing it with RomneyCare is out( not that I was looking forward to that option either).

What do you think are the odds that they will work to amend it and stop wasting time and tax payer money trying to scrap it? Also, thoughts on what the 1st change to the ACA should be?

? ObamaCare IS RomneyCare!

and they are both fucked in the head wrong.

 

[Koios]

It would actually save tax-payers, from a cost standpoint, for those whose policies will now be paid by the government, since they (we) have to buy insurance from the for profit sector.

Wow; the rousing debate from you is so cerebral I'm in utter awe.

I'm sure I've read that somewhere before.

Now then, we know that insurance is merely a rent-seeking entity, as is said in economics. (the study) So by eliminating it, savings is a virtual given, inasmuch as less than 70 cent of every dollar Health Inurance Providers collect ultimately goes to paying for meds, doc visits, hospitals, etc. Further, we know from our own single-payer system (Medicare) that a) overhead is far less as a percentage, than private insurance; more therefore of the money pays for care, not overhead / ret-seeking, and; b) satifaction polling shows Medicare is far more liked on average than private insurance among younger of our people.

Ergo, it's thus highly likely that the Public Option would save money and be far better-liked, paving the way for single-payer since insurance would simply not be able to compete ... in case you're wondering why Health Insurance Lobbying was in the 100s of millions fighting the Public Option, which if their service were better, they'd need not fear, obviously, since folks tend to choose the best option, when given a choice.

Does that help; or need I go deeper for you?

 

[OohPooPahDoo]

Obama was reelected, and the ACA will stay. I would like to see the GOP start working to address the flaws in Obamacare since replacing it with RomneyCare is out( not that I was looking forward to that option either).

What do you think are the odds that they will work to amend it and stop wasting time and tax payer money trying to scrap it? Also, thoughts on what the 1st change to the ACA should be?

? ObamaCare IS RomneyCare!

and they are both fucked in the head wrong.

Much better to have taxpayers foot the bill when people can't pay their emergency room bills.

 

[OohPooPahDoo]

Obama was reelected, and the ACA will stay. I would like to see the GOP start working to address the flaws in Obamacare since replacing it with RomneyCare is out( not that I was looking forward to that option either).

What do you think are the odds that they will work to amend it and stop wasting time and tax payer money trying to scrap it? Also, thoughts on what the 1st change to the ACA should be?

? ObamaCare IS RomneyCare!

no it isn't.....if you didn't like RomneyCare you could move to another state and not buy health insurance....

If you don't like the law the Congress of the United States passed you can move to another country.

 

[dblack]

? ObamaCare IS RomneyCare!

and they are both fucked in the head wrong.

Much better to have taxpayers foot the bill when people can't pay their emergency room bills.

Agreed. It would be better. It's still wrong, and we should work together to repeal it, but it's better than enslaving us to the insurance industry in perpetuity.

EMTALA was a solution looking for a problem. We were fine before it, and we'll be fine after it's repealed.