Kudos to Coburm, Orrin and Burr

[billvon 3,132]

For a long time republicans have done nothing but obstruct and deny Obamacare. They've tried (and failed) to repeal it something like 40 times. Finally they are changing their approach and starting to suggest realistic alternatives. Good for them. Perhaps this will be the beginning of a more productive dialogue on the issue of health care reform.

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Senate Republicans Develop The Most Credible Plan Yet To 'Repeal And Replace' Obamacare

“Repealing and replacing” Obamacare with market-oriented reforms has been the Republican mantra for years now. If you’re a long-time follower of this space, you know that we’re skeptical that Obamacare will ever be repealed, GOP slogans to the contrary. Today, however, a trio of experienced Senate Republicans—Tom Coburn (Okla.), Richard Burr (N.C.), and Orrin Hatch (Utah)—have put forth the most thoughtful and constructive plan yet developed to repeal and replace Obamacare. The plan seeks to ensure that as many Americans have health coverage as Obamacare does. It’s a proposal grounded in the real-world tradeoffs that all serious reformers must make.
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http://www.forbes.com/sites/theapothecary/2014/01/27/senate-republicans-develop-the-most-credible-plan-yet-to-repeal-and-replace-obamacare/

[lawrocket 3]

Leave it to Republicans to fuck this up as well. So they've been fighting tooth and nail to stop the ACA for years. They have been unnsuccessful. So those things that most of them said would happen when this law goes into effect are actually happening, and the GOP decides to abandon the track of, "this was a lousy idea poorly executed" to, "this was a great idea, but poorly executed."

How do I see it? The GOP has been strenuously fighting funding for what amounts to a perpetual motion machine (inexpensive, high quality healthcare available on demand cannot be done any more than perpetual motion machines can be successfully created). So the GOP has decided to abandon that position and take over selling its own brand of snake oil.

Re: the ACA? The ACA is beyond repair right now because it was an idea that can't work in the first place (high wuality, inexpensive care on demand). It's cornerstone goals are not going to be met. This is why Moody's just changed the outlook of the health insurance industry from "stable" to "negative." In part, this is due to the numerous changes the administration keeps making and is expected to keep making. Stability does not exist when arbitrary rules changes are being made, especially after a course was already chosen.

The admin has previously said that the ACA must have 38% of enrollees between 18 and 34. Right now the enrollments 24%, which is why a couple of weeks ago the administration clarified that it's goal is really 30%.

This sort of fundamental failure causes a daisy chain. As the young and healthy are not enrolled, those who do enroll have to pay more. The premiums get a higher price tag. They drop out of the program and signups are even fewer. So the insurance companies then need yearly bailouts, which means taxpayers cover the difference or the insurers go under. Repeat.

Look at the number of people who were disenrolled because their policies did not meet the minimum under the ACA. The President offered the insurers a break to keep those policies but it was too late to actually prevent the disenrollments because momentum could not be overcome.

This daisy chain will continue this year. By summer, the insurance companies will need a bailout. New premiums will be announced in fall (which will be higher unless the bailout allows for lower rates). The grandfathered non-compliant plans will be buried and new enrollees will see more expensive options and may just opt out.

What will the Admin do about it? There's the uncertainty. The Admin will put out some patches, (probably tens of billions of "subsidies" for "low income" insureds (in other words, tens of billions to the insurance companies to keep them afloat)), declare that Obamacare has exceeded expectations in keeping premiums down, and allege that the only problems are because Republicans have been trying to make it fail and greedy insurance commpanies looking for handouts.

And the GOP thinks it can do better? My fear is the GOP actually putting out a replacement. To those who think that it can't get worse than Obamacare, just wait till you see what the GOP can do.

My wife is hotter than your wife.