Firstly, I'm not initiating an argument to either defend or attack Obama's healthcare reform. I just want to gauge everyone's perspective of whether or not they think republicans would actually repeal it if they can get Obama out of the white house. As it stands now, republicans have a lot more power in Congress today than they did when Obamacare got passed through the legislative process. Many Republican hopefuls paint it as the first step towards Obama's goal of turning the US into a socialist or communist state. Yet the legislation was written by insurance lobbyists. And unlike the 90's when Clinton tried to pass healthcare reform there was pretty much no lobbying from insurers against the bill at all when Obama pushed it through. And many argue that there are aspects of Obamacare that give more power to health insurers. So if the health insurance industry is standing behind Obamacare, do you think republicans are being honest with the American public about this legislation? And if they are being honest, will they actually ever repeal it?
Wouldn't it be funny if they managed to repeal enough of it to make it a good idea? Get rid of the mandate and it becomes more palatable. I'll be optimistic and say that I think republicans will repeal parts of the plan, but not the whole plan, and that they'll eliminate the parts that are lame. Probably by accident, mind you.
If they repeal it very little will change. People act as if health care was not a problem before Obamacare, lol. Healthcare is on a disastrous path with or with out Obamacare.
A good point. Republicans seem to have forgotten that, should they succeed in eliminating all of our tools for dealing with the lack of health care in America, the lack will still exist. It's like they plan a sailing voyage by breaking the mast and drilling holes in the hull, then act like they don't know why people are drowning.
But wait. AJ98, what you're suggesting is that the republicans have the same investment in (and from) the insurance companies that the democrats do, and this is why you don't think it'll get repealed? Maybe we should make a law that you can't contribute to two different candidates at the same time. That way we would at least have different insurance companies backing the democrats than the insurance companies backing the republicans. There still wouldn't be a real difference between democrats and republicans, but at least they would be representing different private interests. Nah. But still.
All i'm saying is that republicans having been bouncing back since 2008. If they are really serious about repealing Obamcare, what are they waiting for?
In '08 the dems owned the whitehouse and both houses of Congress. In '10 the reps took back the house of representatives but that only allows them to slow the dems roll. There is legislation the reps have introduced in the house but it'll never get through the senate let alone be signed by Obama. The obstruction goes both ways. Obama can't get his agenda enacted but neither can the reps. In '12 if the reps win the senate and the whitehouse and they don't repeal Obamacare and cut government spending, I'll expect the teaparty and the occupy rabble to tear down Washington DC.
They can't do anything about it at the moment. It is law and they don't have the votes to change it. However, once the Supreme Court declares the mandate unconstitutional it will be sent back to Congress for revision where it will never see the light of day again, unless democrats take back both houses and keep the Presidency.
They need a super majority in the Senate (to avoid a filibuster) and a Republican President to repeal Obamacare. I think one of the first things the new Congress did last year was pass a bill to repeal Obamacare, but the bill wasn't taken up in the Senate, and wouldn't be until there is a Republican majority.
First, I do not think the Republican Party is being honest with the American people on Obamacare. Although it was a Democratic Congress that passed the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act, it was a combination of Democrats and Republicans that laid the groundwork for the bill. Two notable figures are Republican Chuck Grassley and Democrat Max Baucus. However, over the summer of 2009, Congressional Republicans went back to their districts and saw how outraged their constituents were. At this point, the Tea Party was in full force. When Congressional Republicans came back to Washington, they started to oppose the bill. If you have watched the documentary Obama's Deal, you would know that the President original intentions were to provide private insurance options, as well as a public option. The public option would be tantamount to the healthcare that members of Congress get. In addition, Obama did not want an individual mandate, and rightly so. Such a provision drives up the cost of healthcare. What forced Obama to give in was the extensive pressure by the health insurance industry, namely America's Health Insurance Plans and Karen Ignagni, and by the pharmacueticals industry, namely PhRMA. Therefore, if we are to have universal healthcare on a federal level, we should not have an individual mandate, and provide a public option.
I tend to agree a little. But I think that the Affordable Healthcare Act helped things a bit. Personally, I think Health Insurance and other companies (their lobbying) are essentially a curse upon Americans economically; they had more to do with Congress NOT passing better healthcare legislation than likely anything else. Get Money Out!!
Doomed? Free healthcare for everybody is doomed? Even Mexican druglords and MS13 gangbangers might be able to get their gunshot wounds treated fer nuttin. Aren't taxpayers awesome?!!!
The public option, or the single payer system, is preferable to letting unscrupulous insurance companies dictate health care policies or having a patchwork of different and unequal plans around the country. The easiest solution would be to expand Medicare for all and then rooting out all of the fraud and corruption that occurs when the system is abused by the medical industry or cheating patients.
I seriously doubt that it will be repealed. Those republican hopefuls, if they manage to get voted in, will procrastinate and say that Obiecare is already too embedded to repeal. There may be some half hearted amendments. But by and large, we're stuck with it. The next generation will suffer it's utter failure and will revolt against it. Our generation sucks...we're the ones that allowed it.
I dont see the bill being repealed. Heres the thing. In my family there are currently three generations paying taxes. Thats three generations paying for the debt created by my grand dads generation. Granddad will be ninety four this year. If three generations have not paid down the debt created by one generation just imagine how many generations will carry the debt created by Obamacare. How much is enough? The harder I work the more they take. At what point do the people realize that investing money in the poor is a bad investment. At what point do the people put their boot in the ass of the poor. I believe that Obama has put a brick on the backs of the next seven generations behind those who are in their twenties now. Not only that but there in no end to the debt, its still growing. This is madness.
Medicare generates 60 billion in fraud every year. That's far more than all of the health insurance profits put together. Why not get cracking on fixing the fraud now instead of waiting until we've made it many times worse?
Imagine, if you will, if you can, the economic collapse of the entire world. Will it be 'Beyond Thunderdome'? When even those billion plus Chinese assembly line slaves have no more Barbie Dolls or iPhones to produce. The day when 'paying taxes' with dollars will exist in moments of melancholy. 'Ah, those good old days, when there was money'. When we'll look back longingly at class warfare. When signs will be on every locked ER door saying 'Sorry, this ER is closed'. Because the government is out of money or government services have shut down for a while due to political ineptness. When doctors say, 'yes, you do need that heart medicine or that chemo..but you don't qualify, so; take 2 aspirin and call me in the morning...if you survive the night'. 'Hail to the Chief'
So, what are you waiting for? Why don't you people get off your obstructionist asses and pitch in? Most of the crooks bilking Medicare are repubs. Instead of working together to clean up the corruption, what do you do? You elect one of the biggest ever Medicare fraudsters as governor of Florida.
If they did repeal it, the American public would have them out on the next cycle. I have a feeling that after the law goes into effect, the American public will become very fiercely defensive of it--just like they are of Medicare. The Republicans won't be able to get a supermajority in the Senate in this cycle or the next, so it's basically impossible for them to repeal it. Sure, but in doing so they had to cannibalize their natural allies on the other side. Most of the Democrats that remain are the strong "liberals" in heavily Democratic districts. As the Republicans win more battles in swing districts, they'll continue to lose defectors on the Democratic side--because the defectors are those swing Democrats. They won't be able to actually establish a supermajority, and party discipline in the "liberal" caucus will keep them from allowing a repeal of the bill.
The Dems are running the government, not Republicans. Administrative agencies that would crack down on fraud take orders from the executive branch. I'm curious where in the world you got the idea that Republicans are the main ones swindling Medicare? Most of them seem to be fly by night medical supply companies (at least according to the 60 Minutes investigation on this) so I doubt they are leaving their voter registration cards on the way out of their offices.
