The ongoing failure of Republican healthcare bills

[Starlight]

For the 5th time the Senate has now failed to pass the Republican healthcare bills. 4 Republican senators have been opposing the bills, and thus the Republicans do not have the votes.

Most recently Mitch McConnell has opted for the innovative strategy of not telling the senators what's in the bill they're voting on, essentially handing them a black box labelled "a mystery Republican healthcare bill" and asking them to vote on it. This approach comes after numerous previous failures.

The bill is historically unpopular with the US public, with 16% of people nationally thinking the bill is a good idea.

It's main features include:
- Retaining nearly all of Obamacare
- Giving a massive retroactive tax cut to the top 1% of earners, financed by making healthcare cost more for everyone else
- Raising healthcare costs for nearly everyone that will cause ~23 million people to no longer be able to afford health insurance

This has confused Trump because he thinks this 'healthcare' bill is actually about healthcare and repealing Obamacare. In truth it's about the Republicans delivering on their promises to their mega-donors to cut the tax rates for the ultra-rich.

This also seems to have confused many Republican voters who thought their party was against Obamacare.

Ex-House Majority Leader, Republican Eric Cantor, gave a fairly revealing interview today on the subject:

Remember the summer of 2013, when the “Defund Obamacare Tour” drove the news cycle all through Congress’s August recess?... Cantor helped create that perception... After seven years of pledging they could dismantle Obamacare, if only they had control of Congress and the White House, Republicans—at last in charge of both—have faced deep divisions over a replacement.

Asked if he feels partly responsible for their current predicament, Cantor is unequivocal. “Oh,” he says, “100 percent.”

He goes further: “To give the impression that if Republicans were in control of the House and Senate, that we could do that when Obama was still in office . . . .” His voice trails off and he shakes his head. “I never believed it.”

He says he wasn’t the only one aware of the charade: “We sort of all got what was going on, that there was this disconnect in terms of communication, because no one wanted to take the time out in the general public to even think about ‘Wait a minute—that can’t happen.’ ” But, he adds, “if you’ve got that anger working for you, you’re gonna let it be.”

His admission that the Republican politicians were happy to get their base "angry" by promising things they knew "can't happen" and that they themselves "never believed", shows what a mess the current Republican party is.

[Tassman]

For the 5th time the Senate has now failed to pass the Republican healthcare bills. 4 Republican senators have been opposing the bills, and thus the Republicans do not have the votes.

Most recently Mitch McConnell has opted for the innovative strategy of not telling the senators what's in the bill they're voting on, essentially handing them a black box labelled "a mystery Republican healthcare bill" and asking them to vote on it. This approach comes after numerous previous failures.

The bill is historically unpopular with the US public, with 16% of people nationally thinking the bill is a good idea.

It's main features include:
- Retaining nearly all of Obamacare
- Giving a massive retroactive tax cut to the top 1% of earners, financed by making healthcare cost more for everyone else
- Raising healthcare costs for nearly everyone that will cause ~23 million people to no longer be able to afford health insurance

This has confused Trump because he thinks this 'healthcare' bill is actually about healthcare and repealing Obamacare. In truth it's about the Republicans delivering on their promises to their mega-donors to cut the tax rates for the ultra-rich.

This also seems to have confused many Republican voters who thought their party was against Obamacare.

Ex-House Majority Leader, Republican Eric Cantor, gave a fairly revealing interview today on the subject:

Remember the summer of 2013, when the “Defund Obamacare Tour” drove the news cycle all through Congress’s August recess?... Cantor helped create that perception... After seven years of pledging they could dismantle Obamacare, if only they had control of Congress and the White House, Republicans—at last in charge of both—have faced deep divisions over a replacement.

Asked if he feels partly responsible for their current predicament, Cantor is unequivocal. “Oh,” he says, “100 percent.”

He goes further: “To give the impression that if Republicans were in control of the House and Senate, that we could do that when Obama was still in office . . . .” His voice trails off and he shakes his head. “I never believed it.”

He says he wasn’t the only one aware of the charade: “We sort of all got what was going on, that there was this disconnect in terms of communication, because no one wanted to take the time out in the general public to even think about ‘Wait a minute—that can’t happen.’ ” But, he adds, “if you’ve got that anger working for you, you’re gonna let it be.”

His admission that the Republican politicians were happy to get their base "angry" by promising things they knew "can't happen" and that they themselves "never believed", shows what a mess the current Republican party is.

Let’s understand just how amazing these circumstances are. We’re talking about a bill that would take coverage from 32 million people, repealing Obamacare and replacing it with nothing. And 45 Republican senators voluntarily said, “Yep, that sounds good to me.”

[Starlight]

Let’s understand just how amazing these circumstances are. We’re talking about a bill that would take coverage from 32 million people, repealing Obamacare and replacing it with nothing. And 45 Republican senators voluntarily said, “Yep, that sounds good to me.”

Yeah gotta love the latest strategy of "well if we just vote now to repeal whatever Obama did, but we delay it actually taking effect for a couple of years... then that will force us to agree on something over the course of those two years, when we haven't been able to come to any agreement on a plan for the last 8 years."

It's craziness all the way down with these Republicans. And they pretend they're the party of 'personal responsibility'...

[Starlight]

It's worth noting that nearly all the components of Obamacare are massively popular in polls:
- Medicaid expansion
- Pre-existing conditions coverage
- Children staying on their parents plans until their 20s
- Healthcare marketplaces
- Subsidies

The only component that isn't popular is the "individual mandate". But, of course, the individual mandate is kind of required to make the insurance marketplaces work properly and to lower costs across the board, because with any insurance you need widespread buy-in to make it work. It's one of those "we love having roads but we're against paying the taxes that fund them" kind of issues.

[Sparko]

Let’s understand just how amazing these circumstances are. We’re talking about a bill that would take coverage from 32 million people, repealing Obamacare and replacing it with nothing. And 45 Republican senators voluntarily said, “Yep, that sounds good to me.”

Repealing Obamacare doesn't take healthcare away from anyone. It just removes the regulations that Obamacare put in place and leaves it an open market again like it was before. We did just fine without Obamacare for a pretty long time. Obamacare did do a few good things, but overall, it caused more problems than anything else. Like forcing people to buy healthcare even if they did not want it. To refuse would cost them around $4,000/year in penalties. And the the Insurance companies keep pulling out of the marketplace, leaving less choice.

So no, it would not take coverage from 32 million people. Obamacare isn't Healthcare. It is various regulations about healthcare insurance.

[Bill the Cat]

The problem is that there are 3 groups of Senators in the Republican party right now. 1 group wants Obamacare gone completely before any replacement bill is even worked on. Rand Paul seems to be leading that group IIRC. The second, larger group wants a replacement bill in place before Obamacare is repealed. McConnell seems to be leading that group. He does not have the support of the first or third group because some elements of Obamacare will remain while the huge increases from Obamacare with regard to Medicare/Medicaid spending are being reduced over the next decade. The third, very small group wants to protect the increase in Medicare completely, and will not support the first two groups because of that. Murkowski seems to be leading this group.

[Bill the Cat]

The bill is historically unpopular with the US public, with 16% of people nationally thinking the bill is a good idea.

.

How can people be not in favor of the Republican bill if they don't even have a unified bill in which to evaluate??

[mikewhitney]

It's worth noting that nearly all the components of Obamacare are massively popular in polls:
- Medicaid expansion
- Pre-existing conditions coverage
- Children staying on their parents plans until their 20s
- Healthcare marketplaces
- Subsidies

The only component that isn't popular is the "individual mandate". But, of course, the individual mandate is kind of required to make the insurance marketplaces work properly and to lower costs across the board, because with any insurance you need widespread buy-in to make it work. It's one of those "we love having roads but we're against paying the taxes that fund them" kind of issues.

If people want their government to be their mom, they should emigrate to New Zealand.

The Constitution of the United States of America doesn't give permission to the federal government to be our mom.

I'm thankful that you are concerned about America but I do wish you would be defending the people instead of the pharmaceutical companies

[Leonhard]

I've been reading a lot of salty comments by conservatives who voted for Trump glad that he'd remove Obamacare, but angry at him for removing ACA and leaving them without healthcare. Not knowing they were the same thing.

[mikewhitney]

I've been reading a lot of salty comments by conservatives who voted for Trump glad that he'd remove Obamacare, but angry at him for removing ACA and leaving them without healthcare. Not knowing they were the same thing.

It is sort of nice to know that you are interested in news about healthcare in America. True, the use of multiple terms for the same law can be confusing.

[Leonhard]

It is sort of nice to know that you are interested in news about healthcare in America. True, the use of multiple terms for the same law can be confusing.

Danes have always been kinda fascinated by the drama of American politics. Its a lot more colorful than our own politicians, who are more mundane and do little more than shuffle around 5% of the budget, while in general agreeing on a lot of things. And we consider the US our friend... maybe not our best friend, that's probably Norway, but as different as we are we love the US.

[mikewhitney]

Danes have always been kinda fascinated by the drama of American politics. Its a lot more colorful than our own politicians, who are more mundane and do little more than shuffle around 5% of the budget, while in general agreeing on a lot of things. And we consider the US our friend... maybe not our best friend, that's probably Norway, but as different as we are we love the US.

Aw thanks. I hope we can act as a friend back to you. Please forgive some of my interest in certain political threads. My main concern is to preserve the form of government we were given. I fear that we will lose any remaining freedom if we continue to have a government that doesn't obey the law.

[JimL]

Repealing Obamacare doesn't take healthcare away from anyone. It just removes the regulations that Obamacare put in place and leaves it an open market again like it was before.

Which would take healthcare away from millions of americans.

We did just fine without Obamacare for a pretty long time.

I think you mean to say that "you did just fine" without Obamacare.

Obamacare did do a few good things, but overall, it caused more problems than anything else.

No, overall Obamacare helped to insure millions of people who prior to its becoming law could not afford it. It stopped insurance companies from selling junk plans that covered basically nothing. It forced Insurance companies to cover those with pre-existing conditions. It allowed children to stay on their parents plan until age 26. Preventative care, yearly checkups, prostate exams, colonoscopy's, mammograms etc etc etc were free of charge. It slowed the rate at which premiums rose. It had problems yes, but many of those problems were the result of republican sabotage.

Like forcing people to buy healthcare even if they did not want it.

First of all, you can be on your parents insurance until age 26, after that health insurance is pretty much a necessity, and if you don't have it then the rest of us will end up paying for it.

To refuse would cost them around $4,000/year in penalties.

Exagerate much, this year if you don't have insurance it will cost you a $700 dollar fine. At least get your facts straight.

And the the Insurance companies keep pulling out of the marketplace, leaving less choice.

That is mainly due to the instability that the Republican Congress, republican governors and the republican president are purposely causing in the markets in order to sabotage Obamacare.

So no, it would not take coverage from 32 million people. Obamacare isn't Healthcare. It is various regulations about healthcare insurance.

So, yes it would take coverage away from millions of Americans, the same millions that now have it thanks to Obamacare.

Btw, the great Obamacare detractors, the republican congress, after 7 years of ranting, and now 7 months of legislating, has just failed to pass a repeal or a replace bill because they are all talk and now that they actually have to govern they know that if they do what they said they would do for 7 years then they are finished as a party. With the crew you have in there now, they may be finished anyway.

[Starlight]

So the latest is that a few Republican senators have said they will vote for what's being labelled the 'skinny' bill, as long as the Republican congress promises not to pass it.



You really can't make this stuff up.

[Tassman]

If people want their government to be their mom, they should emigrate to New Zealand.

The Constitution of the United States of America doesn't give permission to the federal government to be our mom.

It is the role of government to care for the most vulnerable in society, such as the elderly and those living in grinding poverty. Some people feel morally obliged to not passively watch people around them starve to death or die from some preventable disease. Most western nations, such as NZ and Australia, understand this and provide universal health care. Interestingly the Christian USA takes the “every man for himself” approach.