A.C.A. (Substantive and Punny)

The Affordable Care Act is not my favorite piece of legislation. Let's start now and work our way back. Approximately 40 million Americans have no insurance, can't afford their premium or co-pays. That's the state of healthcare in our country today. Is that acceptable to you? Why is it this way? Because we are still debating whether healthcare is a right or a privilege.

We are the only first world industrialized nation to still be having this argument. Given our history and position as the most powerful nation on earth this is unacceptable and inexcusable. It only continues to be reality because of the extreme fantasies of demagogues who continue to fool people into believing that true universal single payer care is a plot to transfer our nation to communism. They say socialism but they mean big red commie. They know, I give them the benefit of the doubt here, that we already have the two biggest socialist programs in the world. Bigger than any programs implemented by actually self identified socialist nations.

President Dwight D. Eisenhower warned our nation about the military industrial complex. A very courageous stance to take in the 1950's and a direct indictment of war for profit based on the creation of an entire industry dedicated to it. Perhaps it took a former five star general to make such statements. When will we finally have a President who warns us about the medical industrial complex. It is long overdue and we are moving toward an economic cataclysm if we do not change.

The only viable solution is that we all are in Medicare from birth to grave. With premiums paid based upon income. We pay taxes out of every payroll check toward this program. Anyone reading this blog is a well informed citizen or you wouldn't be here but I assure you millions of Americans do not know how Medicare works. It is not free and premiums continue to be paid by those who draw regular Social Security, those on S.S.D.I. and S.S.I. do not. Medicare is regulated and overseen by the Federal government including Congress, but it's services are brought to you through private insurance carriers coordinated through C. M. S. Every doctor you see and hospital you visit are part of private entities, they do not work for the government, which is the chief lie perpetuated by those who oppose a single payer universal system.

The cost is continuing to rise because there is no cohesive bargaining system in place. Make no mistake you are not getting any better care under our current system than you would under a complete Medicare system. In fact our ratio of successful outcome versus cost is among the lowest in the first world. We over test, mostly the big high cost test, so a bill can be churned. Doctors are pressured by their corporate directors to see you more often than is necessary. Your insurance provider has more input with your doctor and control of your life than any government ever conceived of. If we are all in the same boat we have an incentive to insure the boat is solid and running well. Left in our own little dingies it's every person for themselves and good luck to you, so sorry if you drown.
                                          
In the 2007 to '08 Democratic campaign for President, Barack Obama's principal challengers were Hillary Clinton and John Edwards. Both Clinton and Edwards pledged to address healthcare and both stated that a mandate to purchase health insurance would be required. Candidate Obama flatly refused this assertion, claiming that his plan would make health insurance affordable and that no mandate would be required. After all, as Obama emphasized, who wouldn't buy insurance if it were affordable. Once he became President his tune changed immediately to a mandated system. During the formation of the healthcare package many versions came forth including one in the Senate drafted by Democratic Senator Max Baucus, a known surrogate of the insurance industry, that was so pro industry that even Obama couldn't sign on. Eventually what was settled on based upon a timetable to beat the 2010 election was a 2000 page document that very few outside of insurance lobbyists actually read. Obama quickly caved on including the government option, meaning Medicare, proving he had no commitment to it or his campaign promises. He wanted to be the President who got healthcare reform passed despite it being bad legislation

The good things in it such as the no preexisting condition clause and allowing kids to stay on their parents plan until the age of 26 could easily have been attained with a true patient bill of rights with teeth.

The Republican Party hates Barack Obama and anything he does including the Affordable Care Act which is based on policies which President Richard Nixon was hoping to put forward. Policies which were heavily created and advocated by the conservative think tank The Heritage Foundation. The same legislation advocated by the Republican Congress lead by Newt Gingrich and the same law enacted by the Governor of Massachusetts, severely conservative Mitt Romney.

Multiple attempts to repeal the A.C.A. have been attempted by the Republicans. They have failed. The U.S. Supreme Court has already upheld the law is constitutional. Now there is another challenge and SCOTUS will rule again in June. I predict they will uphold the law and deny the petitioners.

The A.C.A. is full of problems and needs to be fixed. The website problems are disgraceful and ridiculous in a country with our technology talent. The Obama Administration will punt the problems to the next President. That's also disgraceful but given the Republican hatred of this President it's doubtful he could accomplish much of a fix short of abandoning it completely.

The Republicans are not heroes or champions here. They had 12 years to address this problem and didn't because they truly believe in a system of every man for himself.

This problem must be fixed. No citizen of this country should go without medical care or fear seeking it out because they cannot afford it. There are millions in exactly that position. I ask again,is this acceptable to you?