Why Don't Some Republicans , Conservatives and Libertarians Understand That There Are Millions Of People Who Cannot Afford Health Care?
According to some conservative/libertarians, including here on NT, health care subsidies and Medicaid constitute "taking' from them and giving to those who are unworthy.
That may be a matter of opinion, but the necessity for the subsidies and the free health care is not.
When poor people buy food, they will shop the bargain bins and the "day old" sections where the reduced price bakery goods and dairy products are discounted because the sell by date is about to elapse. Or they will eat beans and cut rate hot dogs. They will buy food from a dollar store perhaps.
When poor people need shelter they can find a basement apartment , or live in a trailer park, or in a run down part of town, and the rent will be less than other areas.
When they need transportation they can take the bus or use a bicycle to get around.
And when they need clothes they can get them from Walmart or K Mart, or other lower class discount chains or a shop that sells used clothes.
So the poor can make do with what many people would consider second rate and discount goods and services because that is all they can afford.
But there is no such thing as second rate or discount medical and health care services. Doctors and hospitals write the same invoices to everyone, and don't even have a lesser level of care made specifically available to the poor. That would violate their oaths as medical professionals.
Get the picture?
If people cannot afford health insurance, they can't afford it - but they sure need it. It's not the same as not being able to afford a new car, or any car, or not being able to afford steak, or not being able to afford to live in a safe neighborhood, or have new clothes all the time.
There has to be a way to tax people on a graduated scale that will provide health insurance to everyone.
People say "I don't want to pay for other people's health care" . Maybe someone else doesnt want to pay for highways or aircraft carriers, or for corporate tax breaks, or any of the other things we do as a nation. Do they have a choice?
Psst! Even if they didn't have to pay for the health care of others, they would have to pay for the health care of others. When their own premiums go up because the ER cost is passed on to the consumers/policyholders. ER's are more expensive too. Moral: You are your brothers keeper, whether you choose to be or not!
Psst emergency room visits have increased not decreased with Obamacare.
That was a nasty pivot on my ER point. Are you a pivot man?
I spoke to the cost of ER visits, not the frequency. The cost is passed on by hospitals by inflating the cost to policy holders. Hope that helps your understanding.
As well, hospitals close down because their ER costs are more than can be maintained. When many think of "hospitals" they often think of large, chain-conglomerates. Often forgotten are the multitude of small rural access facilities that dot our heartland, that barely stay in the clear, and cannot fully absorb the costs of uninsured patients. Inner city hospitals are even worse. If we continue to do nothing about healthcare we will see our loss of hospitals affecting the health of our citizens tremendously.
I know this guy whos life was save by hospital #2, when hospital #1 failed to diagnose his heart attack. He was glad to have his premiums go up because of two ER visits + the inflated price of them both. All for 8, and counting, trips around the sun...
Yes Obamacare has been harmful to rural hospitals.
The causes of this decline in the availability of rural health facilities are legion, but at the root of the problem is the crushing weight of regulation through the Affordable Care Act. The sum total of mandated automation, reporting requirements, shrinking reimbursements and increasing penalties for noncompliance with other mandates has left rural hospitals out in the cold.
They understand it quite well, they just don't give a shit.
The Republicans want to end Medicaid Expansion. Those who are on the rolls now will be allowed to keep the coverage, but no new people will be permitted in expanded Medicaid. These chages would be worked in over the next few years.
Are there going to be no more new working poor in 5 or 10 years? While that would be nice, we all know it is not the case.
We have people who CONTINUE to say they don't want to contribute to health care for other people.
What is the end game of this?
Dickens wrote a famous book about it, I know that.
"Are there no prisons?" asked Scrooge.
"Plenty of prisons," said the gentleman, laying down the pen again.
"And the Union workhouses ?" demanded Scrooge. "Are they still in operation?"
"They are. Still," returned the gentleman, "I wish I could say they were not."
"The Treadmill and the Poor Law are in full vigour, then?" said Scrooge.
Of course 73% of all those the CBO says will "lose" insurance will do so voluntarily as they will no longer be mandated to or pay a fine/tax . It will be much easier to finance risk pools and a combination of government HSA and catastrophic health insurance for the remaining 27%.