[quote=ucodegen][quote=SK in CV]That’s really a bunch of garbage. There was real discussion, for months and months. I read two different versions of the entire bill, plus the final bill before it was passed. Anyone who claims that there wasn’t real debate on the issues simply wasn’t paying attention. In fact, it was debated pretty heatedly here.[/quote]But also note, that the passing of Obamacare cost the Democrats some of their House seats. In a change of opinion, or party vote, the House shows it first. Obamacare was never the 100% everybody for it shoe in that the media sometimes tries to portray it at. It got through House and Senate, largely on party-line votes.. now the other party gets its say… maybe because people responded to Obamacare by voting for more Republicans this time (swing voters).
While it is called “Affordable Health Care Act”, it does nothing to control costs. Instead it mandates paying a middleman, who takes their cut (see loss ratio for Insurance companies). The middleman happens to be Insurance companies, which oddly are partially responsible for Credit Default Swaps and their use (though not all involved in Health Insurance inhaled that stuff). It even taxes medical device manufacturers, who have to put up with a significant risk when inventing new devices, medical sensing equipment etc. How is taxing these industries cutting costs? How are you going to insure that this middle man has your interests at heart? Yet more laws? Another Insurance Commissioner (happened with auto insurance. Mandating auto insurance was supposed to reduce those costs, but it didn’t).. ie Heath Insurance Commissioner? How do we insure that he really works for us is not operating a Goldman style revolving door? Is it all supposed to magically work because the idea of affordable Health Care sounds good?
How about something useful.. how about all Hospitals have to publish their Chargemasters…. now that is transparency!
Lets start some competition between the Hospitals. Simple, but the powers that be don’t want something so simple and that will work.[/quote]
It does mandate cost controls. Many policy holders have already got their second refund due to the MLR limits. In exchange for that MLR floor, the insurance companies got mandatory coverage. They’ll end up ahead in the deal.
As will non-profit hospitals in states that will expand Medicaid coverage. But all hospitals have already seen decreased reimbursements and penalties for failure to meet readmission standards. It’s already caused consolidation in the space, and non-profits selling out to for profits, particularly in those states where Medicaid expansion won’t happen.
But in general I agree with you. The law was in part poorly written, and in part ill conceived. There was a lot more that could have been done. But I expect that ultimately it will reduce the rise total health care costs, expand the availability of coverage and be a step in the right direction to fix what was a many faceted irreparable model for health care financing. It wasn’t just health care providers making too much profit, or insurance companies making too much profit, or DME manufacturers or drug companies making too much money that caused the system to break. And no single thing will fix it.
