I'd be interested to know what Republicans would think of this from a political perspective.
So my buddy and I met for beers yesterday, and this morning my foggy little brain could have SWORN he said that Trump may be pushing to expand the current Medicare / Medicare Advantage / Medicare Supplement system to all, which is PRECISELY what I have been SCREAMING for, for fucking YEARS.
Get this, according to Forbes, it's possible: Trump's Stealth Health Plan Could Be 'Medicare For All'
Good gawd, that would be nice. From the piece:
First, a little background. The premise of MFA is that everyone outside of corporate and government health plans would be automatically covered. There would be no state marketplaces, no provider networks and no draconian deductibles. You wouldn't have to apply and choose a plan based on premiums. Access would be a non-issue.
The Medicare system at present has four parts covering hospitals, medical services, an optional managed care and prescription drugs. You pay modest premiums for each component and can supplement out-of-pocket costs through private "supplement" or "Medigap" policies.
An expanded Medicare, in short, wouldn't just be for those over 65 and the permanently disabled. If you needed it, you'd get it at any age and wouldn't have to wait for enrollment periods or deal with an online marketplace. You could keep your doctors and local health care providers. Medicare would simply pay most the lion's share of your medical bills.
What makes me believe that Trump might back MFA? He's consistently said he wants "everybody" to be covered. That would happen with a single-payer program like Medicare.
"As far as single payer, it works in Canada," Trump said during a GOP debate in 2015. "It works incredibly well in Scotland. It could have worked in a different age, which is the age you’re talking about here,” he said, noting several times in the past he would not cut Medicare or Social Security, both of which are on the GOP's hit list.
“We’re going to have a health care that is far less expensive and far better,” said Trump at his news conference on Jan. 11. “We don’t want anyone who currently has insurance to not have insurance,” said Kellyanne Conway, a Trump adviser, on Jan. 3. “Also we are very aware that the public likes coverage for pre-existing conditions.”
Some Added Benefits
Does Trump truly back a single-payer plan or has he been casually spouting populist rhetoric while still in campaign mode? It's certainly been easy to be against Obamacare, but there's an upside to Medicare expansion because you could offer access to a popular, low-cost program that could actually reduce the overall costs of health care.
Better yet, MFA could replace the Affordable Care Act, which the GOP is in the process of dismantling, although it hasn't announced a viable replacement plan. Trump has also said he wants to scrap the law.
Here's another political bonus: The animus against Obamacare may not come into play with an expanded Medicare. The program is popular; polls consistently show that the public wants to keep it intact. And universal Medicare would eliminate most of the gripes people now have with Obamacare such as high deductibles, out-of-network fees, rising premiums and coverage gaps, which is a problem with any system anchored by private insurers.
.
So my buddy and I met for beers yesterday, and this morning my foggy little brain could have SWORN he said that Trump may be pushing to expand the current Medicare / Medicare Advantage / Medicare Supplement system to all, which is PRECISELY what I have been SCREAMING for, for fucking YEARS.
Get this, according to Forbes, it's possible: Trump's Stealth Health Plan Could Be 'Medicare For All'
Good gawd, that would be nice. From the piece:
First, a little background. The premise of MFA is that everyone outside of corporate and government health plans would be automatically covered. There would be no state marketplaces, no provider networks and no draconian deductibles. You wouldn't have to apply and choose a plan based on premiums. Access would be a non-issue.
The Medicare system at present has four parts covering hospitals, medical services, an optional managed care and prescription drugs. You pay modest premiums for each component and can supplement out-of-pocket costs through private "supplement" or "Medigap" policies.
An expanded Medicare, in short, wouldn't just be for those over 65 and the permanently disabled. If you needed it, you'd get it at any age and wouldn't have to wait for enrollment periods or deal with an online marketplace. You could keep your doctors and local health care providers. Medicare would simply pay most the lion's share of your medical bills.
What makes me believe that Trump might back MFA? He's consistently said he wants "everybody" to be covered. That would happen with a single-payer program like Medicare.
"As far as single payer, it works in Canada," Trump said during a GOP debate in 2015. "It works incredibly well in Scotland. It could have worked in a different age, which is the age you’re talking about here,” he said, noting several times in the past he would not cut Medicare or Social Security, both of which are on the GOP's hit list.
“We’re going to have a health care that is far less expensive and far better,” said Trump at his news conference on Jan. 11. “We don’t want anyone who currently has insurance to not have insurance,” said Kellyanne Conway, a Trump adviser, on Jan. 3. “Also we are very aware that the public likes coverage for pre-existing conditions.”
Some Added Benefits
Does Trump truly back a single-payer plan or has he been casually spouting populist rhetoric while still in campaign mode? It's certainly been easy to be against Obamacare, but there's an upside to Medicare expansion because you could offer access to a popular, low-cost program that could actually reduce the overall costs of health care.
Better yet, MFA could replace the Affordable Care Act, which the GOP is in the process of dismantling, although it hasn't announced a viable replacement plan. Trump has also said he wants to scrap the law.
Here's another political bonus: The animus against Obamacare may not come into play with an expanded Medicare. The program is popular; polls consistently show that the public wants to keep it intact. And universal Medicare would eliminate most of the gripes people now have with Obamacare such as high deductibles, out-of-network fees, rising premiums and coverage gaps, which is a problem with any system anchored by private insurers.
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