Posted on 09/14/2018 7:59:36 AM PDT by SeekAndFind
Republican lawmakers have made it clear they have no intention of repealing Obamacare in the current Congress.
Republicans in the nations top lawmaking body have never really wanted to get rid of Obamacare. They would prefer to present the program, which David Horowitz correctly describes as the greatest assault on individual freedom and individual choice in our lifetimes, as a villain and whip up sentiment against it and run against it every election. They view Obamacare as good for the business of politics. They may chip away at it from time to time or tinker with it at the margins, but make no mistake: these creatures of Washington want to keep it in place. This is the Republicans dirty secret.
Republicans have been promising to rip Obamacare out root and branch ever since it was enacted. They ramped up their rhetoric after the allegedly conservative-dominated Supreme Court declared the blatantly unconstitutional Obamacare law constitutional in the incoherent NFIB v. Sebelius ruling of 2012. Americans responded to this government takeover of a huge chunk of the economy by electing GOP-controlled congresses in 2010, 2012, 2014, and 2016, and by electing Donald Trump as president.
Unintimidated by the Left and sneering hack journalists, Trump began the push to bury the misnamed Affordable Care Act and as a result the individual mandate will die at the end of this year. But the bulk of the statute and related rules such as the economically suicidal pre-existing medical conditions mandate remain in place, complete with federal insurance-purchasing subsidies for people who dont need the help, as well as the sclerotic administrative apparatus, and the odious rule that prevents health insurers from competing across state lines.
The top vote-counters in both chambers say repeal is a no-go for the rest of the year. This ought to worry conservatives because there is a good chance that when the new 116th Congress convenes Jan. 3, 2019, one or both of its chambers will be in the hands of the government healthcare-loving Democrats.
So its now or quite possibly never.
Im not going to be asking for another vote on that this year, Senate Majority Whip John Cornyn of Texas reportedly said last week when asked about Obamacare repeal. His counterpart in the House, Steve Scalise of Louisiana, offered excuses for his partys inaction. We need to win this election and then get more seats next year.
Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) said he wont revisit Obamacare before this Election Day, and no expects him to change his tune after then and pursue repeal in a lame-duck congressional session.
Whether the return to the battle over the law is a decision I dont have to reach anytime soon and dont have time to facilitate, even if I was so inclined, McConnell said last week.
Retiring Speaker of the House Paul Ryan (R-Wisc.) made it clear he couldnt care less. I havent even thought about it, he said.
Republican Sens. Susan Collins of Maine and Lisa Murkowski of Alaska, who previously blocked repeal, continue to support keeping the Obamacare law in place.
I would still oppose outright repeal, Collins last week. Aides to Murkowski said she is not interested in another rushed, partisan process in the absence of a quality, comprehensive replacement for the law.
Its the same old same old. And its not going to change unless reliable hardcore conservatives take over Congress.
Do you actually purchase insurance? Outside of an employer paying most of it?
I looked this past month. Cheapest--$1600-$1700 a month with around 8K deductibles, 80/20 coverage until about 11K or something like that. For healthy people, no pre-existing conditions or anything like that.
That's not having insurance. That's not even realistic.
There was no other way.
Bush League Republicans MUST become extinct before the Republic does.
I can afford to pay for a standard insurance plan but I refuse to do it on principle.
They dont have the votes.
The American people hate Obamacare - but they love the Affordable Care Act.
Yes I buy my own.
It’s about half of what you’re saying.
But it’s mighty expensive. At least however, it is there if I need it.
That is what the GOP needs to pay very close attention to.
This is the one issue which could screw things up, big, for the entire party.
But I am very much for 100% healthcare for everyone.
**************
I can understand your situation. However desirable health care for everyone may be, with porous borders, rapidly rising healthcare costs, and an aging population the national financial burden of covering everyone is prohibitive, especially in a country that is laboring under a $21 trillion dollar debt (not counting our even greater unfunded liabilities).
I have a relative who pays exorbitant premiums under Obamacare in a state that has only one provider. Their out of pocket costs are also sky high. They have coverage but the cost of it has placed unanticipated constraints on their lifestyle.
Obamacare, like most government programs, was politically driven. Its financial viability and the economic health of the country were never seriously considered. And like all government programs, it has taken on a life of its own that will only grown increasingly expensive and subject both citizens and medical providers to ever more governmental control.
My GP sold his practice several years ago rather than put up with Obamacare.
Little Marco has shown himself to be little in more ways than one. He’s an attention seeker and an opportunist. That’s all there is to him.
Well, we knew they didn’t have any backbone.
No way I could do any of the other options. I have kids in college. I can't shell out $2K a month for sh*tty insurance that pays for nothing unless I am dying. Even then it probably puts me through a formula and only pays to up my morphine drip to expiration levels. It pisses me off just thinking about it.
I know several people in this position as well. Pretty much all of my friends say the rule in their house, now, is--no one goes to the doctor unless it's an emergency.
My one friend (yes, she has insurance) her husband went to the doctor last week. He had two RXs. One was for some high "octane" fish oil. $600 for the two co-pays.
She skipped it. She went home scoured the internet for a coupon for one and bought the standard fish oil at Costco.
They lied for eight years, made that lie the cornerstone of their campaigns for eight years. Then they were shown to be low life liars when Trump said he’d sign it. Of course they want the issue to be dropped. It’s not Obamacare anymore for me, now it’s McConnell-Ryan care.
Although Trump has been getting way more great things done than any other president, his first two years in office have arguably been for practice because hes been forced to work with a corrupt, anti-Trump Congress left over from the lawless Obama Administration.
Its up to us patriots to rescue Trump from Congress by electing as many new Trump-supporting patriot lawmakers to Congress as we can in the 2018 midterm elections.
Like teats on a boar, useless..
Hollow promises, massive spending, no accountability..
What leadership!! NOT!!!!
Like teats on a boar, useless..
Hollow promises, massive spending, no accountability..
What leadership!! NOT!!!!
They "give up" because they want to leave the remaining parts in place to continue to mess up American Medicine as much as possible and to either flesh it back out or use the stupidities of it to switch it out for Single Payer when they get a more compatible President or until this one "grows in office."
McCain
The penalty for not following the mandate has been set by President Trump to $0.
Leftards predicted calamity and catastrophe in the wake of vitiating the mandate. The largest health insurer in my state said they’d need a 91% increase if the mandate was obsoleted.
We have a small group policy for our little company. Small group rates mirror individual rates. Our premiums had doubled since DeathCare was put in place, and our deductibles more than doubled.
I wasn’t looking forward to the coming year’s renewal increase. But some lonely conservative voices said the opposite of what the leftards said: if you get rid of the mandate, the insurance companies will have to compete on price to keep healthy people in their plans.
So, what happened? Leftard predictions of disastrous price hikes this coming year? Or conservative predictions of price hikes moderated by a little competition for business?
Well, we got our rates a week and a half or two weeks ago: We had a premium DECLINE of 0.26%. From the same insurer who was shouting that they’d need a 91% increase.
There really is more work to be done to tear down DeathCare, but Mitch has been working overtime on getting judges confirmed.
With a little luck, we’ll pick up seats in the Senate, and with a lot of luck, we’ll keep the House, and we can go back and attack this toward the end of 2019.
And we’ll need to keep the pressure on.
The penalty for not following the mandate has been set by President Trump to $0.
Leftards predicted calamity and catastrophe in the wake of vitiating the mandate. The largest health insurer in my state said they’d need a 91% increase if the mandate was obsoleted.
We have a small group policy for our little company. Small group rates mirror individual rates. Our premiums had doubled since DeathCare was put in place, and our deductibles more than doubled.
I wasn’t looking forward to the coming year’s renewal increase. But some lonely conservative voices said the opposite of what the leftards said: if you get rid of the mandate, the insurance companies will have to compete on price to keep healthy people in their plans.
So, what happened? Leftard predictions of disastrous price hikes this coming year? Or conservative predictions of price hikes moderated by a little competition for business?
Well, we got our rates a week and a half or two weeks ago: We had a premium DECLINE of 0.26%. From the same insurer who was shouting that they’d need a 91% increase.
There really is more work to be done to tear down DeathCare, but Mitch has been working overtime on getting judges confirmed.
With a little luck, we’ll pick up seats in the Senate, and with a lot of luck, we’ll keep the House, and we can go back and attack this toward the end of 2019.
And we’ll need to keep the pressure on.
All talk, no rooster.
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