Trading Health Care for the Poor for Tax Cuts for the Rich - NYT Editorial Board

[DonViejo]

So much for President Trump’s pledge of “insurance for everybody.”

The Congressional Budget Office said on Monday that next year 14 million fewer Americans will have insurance if the Affordable Care Act, or Obamacare, is repealed and replaced on the terms the president is seeking. That tally would rise to 21 million in 2020 and 24 million in 2026. By then, the total number of uninsured Americans would reach 52 million.

And for what? To give a gigantic tax cut to wealthy Americans.

According to the C.B.O. the loss of health care coverage under the Republican plan stems largely from gutting Medicaid for low-income Americans, even though Link to tweet
?lang=en" target="_blank">Mr. Trump has said he would not cut Medicaid. Coverage would also be lost in part because insurance would become unaffordable for millions as subsidies are withdrawn, despite Mr. Trump’s claim that coverage would become “much less expensive and much better.”

Older people would be hard hit. The Republican plan repeals the penalty for not buying insurance. One predictable result of this change is that premiums will rise as younger, healthier people refuse to buy insurance. To hold down the cost of average premiums, the proposal would allow insurers to charge five times more for older enrollees than younger ones, rather than three times, as permitted under Obamacare. The outcome would be reduced premiums for young adults, essentially paid for by charging substantially higher premiums for older people — and higher deductibles and other cost-sharing for everyone.

more
https://www.nytimes.com/2017/03/13/opinion/trading-health-care-for-the-poor-for-tax-cuts-for-the-rich.html?emc=edit_th_20170314&nl=todaysheadlines&nlid=57435284

[disalitervisum]

1. Every small town (and big town) local media outlet and newspaper across the country

today is leading with a "fake news" story about the republican healthcare bill. Every one. Sad.