The ACA was a capitulation to Republicans' "market based solutions" because Obama believed, incorrectly, that the GOP would go along with that. They didn't. Americans saw it as a give to insurance companies, which it was for the reason stated above. He should have enacted Medicare for All.
The GOP has no interest in Americans' health, only profit for those in charge of providing access to health care. We already pay far more than other industrialized nations for a lower life expectancy because our system exists for profit, not care, including avoiding regulating things that cause ill health in the first place, like low nutrition, high calorie foods. The GOP is the party of the rich. It's that simple.
As always, I appreciate being informed of the horrors of this administration, but I'm increasingly wanting to know what we can do about it. I know many of the courts are actively holding the line for the Constitution, thank goodness! But what else? My understanding is that the people need to be vocal and stand up. I know Indivisible is doing some of that work. Is that all? And I wish we'd stop rehashing Biden, other than to call out the idiots who are piling on.
Billy Joel has made the background music for my entire life. I got to see him here in Arlington, TX in 2019 and it was hands down the best concert I’ve ever been to. Prayers for a quick recovery.
It never ceases to amaze me how much Republicans hate the idea of Americans being able to get health insurance. Even Republicans who could benefit from getting health insurance hate the idea. It’s truly mind-boggling.
Like most other terrible things, the fault lies with voters who elect these cretins time and time again.
You don’t have to tell me how bad it will be without the ACA - I remember. And a Columbia professor was making good progress with research into my chronic disease. We had high hopes because he was going to be looking at treatments next. But Columbia … Trump … research funds cut off.
I’m afraid four years of Trump and this Trumpian Republican Congress may totally kill this nation. Two years could.
Yes, all of these broadsides to Medicaid will additively kill Obamacare, once and for all. Death by a thousand cuts. A 15 year effort- finally within reach. The first thing likely, a pivot back to more private health insurance. A past that wasn't particularly great: high premiums, pre-existing exclusions, longer wait times for coverage to kick in. Back to so many awful ghosts of insurance past, which precipitated the ACA in the first place. And for those who will have no access to private insurance after the demise of Medicaid? Probably some pretty hard outcomes, for that 8 million or so folks. Whose numbers are expected to grow over time, as all the cuts come fully into effect. Welcome to the Donald Trump and GOP plan to Make America Healthy Again. Which will accomplish no such thing for millions of Americans.
Jonathan, I am so grateful for your coverage of healthcare in this country. When told the best thing I can do to fight this regime is find a topic I am passionate about and become an expert, health care comes to mind. You are invaluable to my understanding of what exists now and what we could lose. The way we do healthcare in this country is stupid. I know there have to be some really smart people out there who can take all these ridiculously disparate plans like private, ACA, Medicaid, Medicare, Medicare Advantage and turn it into a cohesive plan that covers everyone in a way that would make sense in America. Is that conversation happening? I am guessing it must be. Maybe you can amplify some of those ideas.
Biden got no credit for the $$$ he pumped into the ACA. Our monthly premium was cut in half as was our deductible. It's still high, but it's better than nothing.
I would like more information on exactly how much money the insurance companies are raking in from the ACA. We already know that they're Medicare Advantage plans cost the government 8% more than traditional Medicare. Somebody is making a shit ton of money on the ACA and thanks to the Republicans who have sabotaged it since its inception, it isn't the consumers.
I have never been able to afford an ACA plan, I hate it. Back in 2018 when my husband got laid off and I was running a small business, we went to sign up for an ACA plan and it would have cost $2600/month for a shitty plan that would cover absolutely nothing until we hit a $14,000 deductible. A plan with copays was $3500/month. I about had a damn heart attack when I saw how much it would cost. Obviously we couldn't afford that so I had to close my business and get a corporate job just for insurance because nobody would hire my husband (age discrimination is real). I sank into a deep depression for over a year because I loved my business and hated going back to the corporate world, especially for such a stupid reason. My husband is now on Medicare and I just got a plan through a farm bureau that is actually affordable at $260/month with a $1500 deductible--but it requires health records and rejects people with serious health conditions. Right now I could get an ACA plan for $800/month with a $9000 deductible, which is a total ripoff. I really think our politicians would be happy if about 30% of the population just died so the government wouldn't have to pay for benefits. The US could afford to do so much better for its citizens, especially with how high taxes are for the middle class. It infuriates me we don't have access affordable insurance.
No one is going to like this...but I found this read disturbing.What the Reps are doing sucks;but don't we have ANY agency here ?
Those brokers need to step up and become navigators.Those who say it makes it harder then go out and help those that are in jeopardy.
And for those who are stuck...well play victim or work to figure it out.
I hate sounding harsh but this administration will do anything to make people they don't like life's harder.Everything I read in this article tells me there is a solution to these stunts...maybe not easy but possible.
We must tell them...Go Fuck Yourselves,we are going to figure this out and press on.
Great newsletter. Republicans sure do a lot in the name of fraud. The 2020 election was fraudulent; according to DOGE, the govt is riddled with fraud(and waste!); and now there is fraud in Obamacare. These people use fraud as an all-purpose excuse for any program or outcome that they don’t like. They’re like the wild-eyed types that see Bigfoot everywhere. It’s time that Democrats started calling them out on it. Fact is, they want to cut healthcare because said healthcare serves the poor and working classes, not the rich.
Ahhh, thank you so much! All I could think of was ‘breaking and entering’ and even though I knew that was wrong, nothing else would come into my head! 😂
Wait until Grandma gets kicked out of her nursing home because her dementia is so bad she can’t complete her Medicaid paperwork, or something something work requirements…then Cletus and Lurleen will have to take her in, and they won’t be happy…
The ACA was a capitulation to Republicans' "market based solutions" because Obama believed, incorrectly, that the GOP would go along with that. They didn't. Americans saw it as a give to insurance companies, which it was for the reason stated above. He should have enacted Medicare for All.
The GOP has no interest in Americans' health, only profit for those in charge of providing access to health care. We already pay far more than other industrialized nations for a lower life expectancy because our system exists for profit, not care, including avoiding regulating things that cause ill health in the first place, like low nutrition, high calorie foods. The GOP is the party of the rich. It's that simple.
As always, I appreciate being informed of the horrors of this administration, but I'm increasingly wanting to know what we can do about it. I know many of the courts are actively holding the line for the Constitution, thank goodness! But what else? My understanding is that the people need to be vocal and stand up. I know Indivisible is doing some of that work. Is that all? And I wish we'd stop rehashing Biden, other than to call out the idiots who are piling on.
Billy Joel has made the background music for my entire life. I got to see him here in Arlington, TX in 2019 and it was hands down the best concert I’ve ever been to. Prayers for a quick recovery.
It never ceases to amaze me how much Republicans hate the idea of Americans being able to get health insurance. Even Republicans who could benefit from getting health insurance hate the idea. It’s truly mind-boggling.
Like most other terrible things, the fault lies with voters who elect these cretins time and time again.
You don’t have to tell me how bad it will be without the ACA - I remember. And a Columbia professor was making good progress with research into my chronic disease. We had high hopes because he was going to be looking at treatments next. But Columbia … Trump … research funds cut off.
I’m afraid four years of Trump and this Trumpian Republican Congress may totally kill this nation. Two years could.
Yes, all of these broadsides to Medicaid will additively kill Obamacare, once and for all. Death by a thousand cuts. A 15 year effort- finally within reach. The first thing likely, a pivot back to more private health insurance. A past that wasn't particularly great: high premiums, pre-existing exclusions, longer wait times for coverage to kick in. Back to so many awful ghosts of insurance past, which precipitated the ACA in the first place. And for those who will have no access to private insurance after the demise of Medicaid? Probably some pretty hard outcomes, for that 8 million or so folks. Whose numbers are expected to grow over time, as all the cuts come fully into effect. Welcome to the Donald Trump and GOP plan to Make America Healthy Again. Which will accomplish no such thing for millions of Americans.
Jonathan, I am so grateful for your coverage of healthcare in this country. When told the best thing I can do to fight this regime is find a topic I am passionate about and become an expert, health care comes to mind. You are invaluable to my understanding of what exists now and what we could lose. The way we do healthcare in this country is stupid. I know there have to be some really smart people out there who can take all these ridiculously disparate plans like private, ACA, Medicaid, Medicare, Medicare Advantage and turn it into a cohesive plan that covers everyone in a way that would make sense in America. Is that conversation happening? I am guessing it must be. Maybe you can amplify some of those ideas.
Biden got no credit for the $$$ he pumped into the ACA. Our monthly premium was cut in half as was our deductible. It's still high, but it's better than nothing.
I would like more information on exactly how much money the insurance companies are raking in from the ACA. We already know that they're Medicare Advantage plans cost the government 8% more than traditional Medicare. Somebody is making a shit ton of money on the ACA and thanks to the Republicans who have sabotaged it since its inception, it isn't the consumers.
Facts
I have never been able to afford an ACA plan, I hate it. Back in 2018 when my husband got laid off and I was running a small business, we went to sign up for an ACA plan and it would have cost $2600/month for a shitty plan that would cover absolutely nothing until we hit a $14,000 deductible. A plan with copays was $3500/month. I about had a damn heart attack when I saw how much it would cost. Obviously we couldn't afford that so I had to close my business and get a corporate job just for insurance because nobody would hire my husband (age discrimination is real). I sank into a deep depression for over a year because I loved my business and hated going back to the corporate world, especially for such a stupid reason. My husband is now on Medicare and I just got a plan through a farm bureau that is actually affordable at $260/month with a $1500 deductible--but it requires health records and rejects people with serious health conditions. Right now I could get an ACA plan for $800/month with a $9000 deductible, which is a total ripoff. I really think our politicians would be happy if about 30% of the population just died so the government wouldn't have to pay for benefits. The US could afford to do so much better for its citizens, especially with how high taxes are for the middle class. It infuriates me we don't have access affordable insurance.
Billy Joel gave the commencement address when a friend of mine graduated from Fairfield University in Connecticut around 35 years ago.
No one is going to like this...but I found this read disturbing.What the Reps are doing sucks;but don't we have ANY agency here ?
Those brokers need to step up and become navigators.Those who say it makes it harder then go out and help those that are in jeopardy.
And for those who are stuck...well play victim or work to figure it out.
I hate sounding harsh but this administration will do anything to make people they don't like life's harder.Everything I read in this article tells me there is a solution to these stunts...maybe not easy but possible.
We must tell them...Go Fuck Yourselves,we are going to figure this out and press on.
Stop making excuses.Start making plans !!
Great newsletter. Republicans sure do a lot in the name of fraud. The 2020 election was fraudulent; according to DOGE, the govt is riddled with fraud(and waste!); and now there is fraud in Obamacare. These people use fraud as an all-purpose excuse for any program or outcome that they don’t like. They’re like the wild-eyed types that see Bigfoot everywhere. It’s time that Democrats started calling them out on it. Fact is, they want to cut healthcare because said healthcare serves the poor and working classes, not the rich.
What or who are Brenda and Eddie?
They were still going steady in the summer of 75, when they decided the marriage would be at the end of July.
Jonathan kindly made the text "Brenda and Eddie" a link to the song on Youtube. One of my favorites.
2 of the characters in the Billy Joel song "Scenes From an Italian Restaurant". One of my very favorite Billy Joel Songs!
They are from a Billy Joel song. Click on their names if you want to hear it.
Ahhh, thank you so much! All I could think of was ‘breaking and entering’ and even though I knew that was wrong, nothing else would come into my head! 😂
This was a really good and informative post, thank you so much!
Big Beautiful Turd. and with the evisceration of all kinds of research…. We are forked.
And we're only five months in!
Wait until Grandma gets kicked out of her nursing home because her dementia is so bad she can’t complete her Medicaid paperwork, or something something work requirements…then Cletus and Lurleen will have to take her in, and they won’t be happy…