Thanks Jonathan. Very informative. As for the fat felon, no one and I mean no one will ever expect him to come up with anything other than how to grift more money. Provide answers to help those in need? Don't make me laugh.
Do all Americans REALLY want to research insurance companies, hospital rates, procedure costs, lab costs and drug prices, etc. ON THEIR OWN? Don't we have lives to live? Who will be actually qualified to analyze all this data especially if you are in a medical crisis? Wouldn't we be at the mercy of MARKETING????
This is just INSANE. (And the IDIOT in the White House STILL doesn't get simple math: you cannot lower drug prices more than 100%. makes me LMFAO every time Donnie Dumpster Fire says he does this.
"And whatever the agreements’ short-term impact, they are purely voluntary. The only way to have a significant, long-term effect on drug prices would be to pass a law putting such a mechanism in place."
"Whatever the agreements' short impact" - it's none. They are purely voluntary, and they cost money. That means "none." Don't overthink it.
"He’s not wrong about the importance of addressing those root causes. The United States spends more than any other peer country on health care, and in just the last year or two there have been signs it’s starting to rise more quickly than usual."
I'm not saying this to be like "WELL AKSHULLY" or claim there's not a problem but it's really, really important to note that they were rising much SLOWER than usual for the 10 years following the implementation of the ACA.
I mention that not to just be like, "yay ACA" or anything, but just to say that it HAS BEEN an effective tool for controlling costs. If we want to know what kind of stuff controls costs, we have a big giant bill with a bunch of good ideas in it that can we revisit. It's important to do that rather than simply hunting for novel, unproven solutions, and dismissing the status quo as an unmitigated failure can lead to some baby-dense bathwater being thrown out.
1) Overall health spending as a precent of GDP (best way to measure costs) did indeed hold stable in the first ten years after full ACA implementation, first fifteen after enactment. And, as you say, this came after an extended period when it was rising.
2) It's not clear how much credit ACA cost measures get to this. My guess is some, maybe a significant amount, but there's an active debate about this even among people who support the law. It's the kind of thing that's hard to figure out and will be the subject of academic research for a long time.
3) Even if ACA wasn't mainly responsible for holding costs steady, the fact that costs did *not* go up afterwards represents quite an achievement when you consider this was also a time when we were dramatically expanding coverage, helping millions to get insurance. This is why I usually mention it (though I neglected to do so here).
4) There are signs -- just in the last year or so -- that costs (again, as percent of GDP) is starting to rise again. Not clear whether it's a blip or a trend.
And Trump has thrown the one Senator under the bus that was advocating for a "health care plan" which included Trump's "idea", Bill Cassidy. Trump is a sociopath that doesn't give a shit about health care - he just wants to kill anything with Obama's name on it. Look at his obsession about the "Noble peace prize" (as dimwit Witkoff refers to it). When are Republicans going to realize the leader of their party is mentally ill?
I see Trump's healthcare "plan" as a concept of a concept of a plan! Since Trump is involved in it, it is guaranteed to be chaotic and unworkable. My question is, how will Donnie get his cut from the plan and much will it be?
In a perverse way I'm almost glad that so many people are being harmed by the Big Beautiful Bill and the Republicans' cowardice to approve the ACA subsidies, to take back the one trillion dollars cut from Medicaid, from the cuts to SNAP and the lifelines that so many of Trump's and our voters rely on. Touching the stove may be the only way they wake from the cult fever dream and throw the bums out. As to his Great Plan, what a joke. It's more incompetence and idiocy by an administration that is clueless about their health care portfolio.
I know what you mean, but I do so agree. Really perfectly said. Love - touch the stove and cult fever dream. It’s so crazy. You wonder what it is going to take.
the republicans have never had any intentions of delivering healthcare to the American people . in fact they have been working hard to destroy Obamacare since its inception . at this point I don't know why journalists take the bait anymore.
Sounds like what we've received is an under 1000 word concept of a plan. IOW, nothing but ether in clouds. Nothing people can use when they go to the pharmacy to pay for their medications. Much less at the hospital for their life saving surgeries. Which will exhaust their tiny "health savings accounts" in an instant. Welcome back to medical bankruptcies. Pre existing conditions exclusions and deductibles no one can realistically afford, as outlined in TrumpCare hot air.
I don’t understand. Trump said he had talked with the CEOs of all the major drug companies and gotten agreement that they would reduce pricing to the amount other countries pay. How could drug prices still be a problem? He lies. He makes things up. Confabulation is a symptom of dementia, and we all know he’s a very stable genius and has aced cognitive tests. Giving Americans money to put in health savings accounts wouldn’t pay for a 6 day hospitalization for pneumonia. It wouldn’t allow people to purchase cheaper insurance that would get healthcare payments past any clerk who answers the phone. I think they are already being replaced by AI anyway and employing algorithms written by healthcare providers.
the people pushing giving people money directly to pay for "health" care do not mention that if you have no insurance the cost for care is 8-10 times higher...for example, my wife had a liver biopsy that could only be done endoscopically...the bill for this procedure was 18K...the insurance company paid 1800, I paid 350. Sun unless the money given to people is at least 2000 a month, the consumer takes it in the ass again...the insurance companies are the problem in the equation, but as long as lobbyist wield undue influence and dark money rules politics the everyday american is fuqqed.
I agree and it’s so insane. They are so angry over his two terms. When will we as humans wake up that we are all Homo sapiens that just developed regional cultural differences according to weather, food supplies.
Trump is not into policymaking his drill is fraud and other various grifting outlets. His great Health Care plan will only work if you never get sick. He is a terrible leader.. Its like the bank let the bank robber become the bank manager..
Probably the only thing Republicans could introduce better then the Affordable Health Care Act would be Medicare for All and I cannot see Republicans killing for profit healthcare. Health Insurance was created non-profit but Republicans changed it to be for profit. I think most citizens would come down on the idea that health care should not be a profitable enterprise. Something that is needed by all and greatly needed by many at some time in their lives should simply earn practitioners a decent salary that enables them to support a family, buy a house and car and take vacations, like any middle class worker. And we wouldn't need health insurance at all.
Thanks Jonathan. Very informative. As for the fat felon, no one and I mean no one will ever expect him to come up with anything other than how to grift more money. Provide answers to help those in need? Don't make me laugh.
>"It’s hard to know what kind of effort went into this proposal"
None. Trump and his corrupt advisers had a low level staffer get ChatGPT write it for them.
Do all Americans REALLY want to research insurance companies, hospital rates, procedure costs, lab costs and drug prices, etc. ON THEIR OWN? Don't we have lives to live? Who will be actually qualified to analyze all this data especially if you are in a medical crisis? Wouldn't we be at the mercy of MARKETING????
This is just INSANE. (And the IDIOT in the White House STILL doesn't get simple math: you cannot lower drug prices more than 100%. makes me LMFAO every time Donnie Dumpster Fire says he does this.
ROFL --- too funny and as you said utterly impossible to reduce something by more than 100%.
"And whatever the agreements’ short-term impact, they are purely voluntary. The only way to have a significant, long-term effect on drug prices would be to pass a law putting such a mechanism in place."
"Whatever the agreements' short impact" - it's none. They are purely voluntary, and they cost money. That means "none." Don't overthink it.
"He’s not wrong about the importance of addressing those root causes. The United States spends more than any other peer country on health care, and in just the last year or two there have been signs it’s starting to rise more quickly than usual."
I'm not saying this to be like "WELL AKSHULLY" or claim there's not a problem but it's really, really important to note that they were rising much SLOWER than usual for the 10 years following the implementation of the ACA.
I mention that not to just be like, "yay ACA" or anything, but just to say that it HAS BEEN an effective tool for controlling costs. If we want to know what kind of stuff controls costs, we have a big giant bill with a bunch of good ideas in it that can we revisit. It's important to do that rather than simply hunting for novel, unproven solutions, and dismissing the status quo as an unmitigated failure can lead to some baby-dense bathwater being thrown out.
Hi! Thanks for the comments! My thoughts, fwiw:
1) Overall health spending as a precent of GDP (best way to measure costs) did indeed hold stable in the first ten years after full ACA implementation, first fifteen after enactment. And, as you say, this came after an extended period when it was rising.
2) It's not clear how much credit ACA cost measures get to this. My guess is some, maybe a significant amount, but there's an active debate about this even among people who support the law. It's the kind of thing that's hard to figure out and will be the subject of academic research for a long time.
3) Even if ACA wasn't mainly responsible for holding costs steady, the fact that costs did *not* go up afterwards represents quite an achievement when you consider this was also a time when we were dramatically expanding coverage, helping millions to get insurance. This is why I usually mention it (though I neglected to do so here).
4) There are signs -- just in the last year or so -- that costs (again, as percent of GDP) is starting to rise again. Not clear whether it's a blip or a trend.
Thanks for the extra context, Jonathan.
And Trump has thrown the one Senator under the bus that was advocating for a "health care plan" which included Trump's "idea", Bill Cassidy. Trump is a sociopath that doesn't give a shit about health care - he just wants to kill anything with Obama's name on it. Look at his obsession about the "Noble peace prize" (as dimwit Witkoff refers to it). When are Republicans going to realize the leader of their party is mentally ill?
Totally -- and getting worse by the day!
I see Trump's healthcare "plan" as a concept of a concept of a plan! Since Trump is involved in it, it is guaranteed to be chaotic and unworkable. My question is, how will Donnie get his cut from the plan and much will it be?
In a perverse way I'm almost glad that so many people are being harmed by the Big Beautiful Bill and the Republicans' cowardice to approve the ACA subsidies, to take back the one trillion dollars cut from Medicaid, from the cuts to SNAP and the lifelines that so many of Trump's and our voters rely on. Touching the stove may be the only way they wake from the cult fever dream and throw the bums out. As to his Great Plan, what a joke. It's more incompetence and idiocy by an administration that is clueless about their health care portfolio.
I wish it could go right on hurting the t FOOLS, and leave the normal people alone. Sigh.
I agree with you, the more Trump f's up everything he can the better. Sorry to say.
I know what you mean, but I do so agree. Really perfectly said. Love - touch the stove and cult fever dream. It’s so crazy. You wonder what it is going to take.
the republicans have never had any intentions of delivering healthcare to the American people . in fact they have been working hard to destroy Obamacare since its inception . at this point I don't know why journalists take the bait anymore.
They worked hard for decades to prevent any healthcare program -- at least since FDR.
Sounds like what we've received is an under 1000 word concept of a plan. IOW, nothing but ether in clouds. Nothing people can use when they go to the pharmacy to pay for their medications. Much less at the hospital for their life saving surgeries. Which will exhaust their tiny "health savings accounts" in an instant. Welcome back to medical bankruptcies. Pre existing conditions exclusions and deductibles no one can realistically afford, as outlined in TrumpCare hot air.
I don’t understand. Trump said he had talked with the CEOs of all the major drug companies and gotten agreement that they would reduce pricing to the amount other countries pay. How could drug prices still be a problem? He lies. He makes things up. Confabulation is a symptom of dementia, and we all know he’s a very stable genius and has aced cognitive tests. Giving Americans money to put in health savings accounts wouldn’t pay for a 6 day hospitalization for pneumonia. It wouldn’t allow people to purchase cheaper insurance that would get healthcare payments past any clerk who answers the phone. I think they are already being replaced by AI anyway and employing algorithms written by healthcare providers.
sigh
the people pushing giving people money directly to pay for "health" care do not mention that if you have no insurance the cost for care is 8-10 times higher...for example, my wife had a liver biopsy that could only be done endoscopically...the bill for this procedure was 18K...the insurance company paid 1800, I paid 350. Sun unless the money given to people is at least 2000 a month, the consumer takes it in the ass again...the insurance companies are the problem in the equation, but as long as lobbyist wield undue influence and dark money rules politics the everyday american is fuqqed.
I have this feeling that the attempts by Trump and fellow Republicans to kill Obamacare are a form of racism.
Obama is a person of color who has succeeded at partially reforming American health care where no previous president was succesful.
Seems that this was Obama's original sin according to Republicans.
Abandoning current health care when there is no valid replacement plan is incredibly stupid.
I agree and it’s so insane. They are so angry over his two terms. When will we as humans wake up that we are all Homo sapiens that just developed regional cultural differences according to weather, food supplies.
Trump's plan has always been "Later: The Big Reveal!" Gasp! So exciting!
Is anything important to this fool other than himself?
Zilch -- for ever and always.
Trump is not into policymaking his drill is fraud and other various grifting outlets. His great Health Care plan will only work if you never get sick. He is a terrible leader.. Its like the bank let the bank robber become the bank manager..
Probably the only thing Republicans could introduce better then the Affordable Health Care Act would be Medicare for All and I cannot see Republicans killing for profit healthcare. Health Insurance was created non-profit but Republicans changed it to be for profit. I think most citizens would come down on the idea that health care should not be a profitable enterprise. Something that is needed by all and greatly needed by many at some time in their lives should simply earn practitioners a decent salary that enables them to support a family, buy a house and car and take vacations, like any middle class worker. And we wouldn't need health insurance at all.