GOP Still Has No Obamacare Alternative, And Options Are Narrowing

[DonViejo]

SAHIL KAPUR – NOVEMBER 18, 2013, 2:00 PM EST

More than four years after initiating an all-out war to block -- and then destroy -- what they derisively labeled "Obamacare," Republican leaders remain at a loss on how they'd replace the law if their dream of repealing it should ever come true.

Even as conservative health wonks plead with their party to get serious about an alternative, the GOP's headlong pursuit of its Obamacare whale is narrowing its already scant options in devising a bill that fixes the glaring market failures in the system and can satisfy its base. "Repeal and replace," as the slogan went, has effectively morphed into "repeal ... and then we'll consider doing something but we're not sure what."

This paradox was on display during the Sunday talk shows when Sen. Kelly Ayotte (NH), an ambitious first-term Republican who is close to leadership, lambasted Obamacare as a "mess" but struggled to explain what she would support as an alternative.

"Well, I would say let's get to the table on a bipartisan basis and let's make sure that we have a plan that has more choice, not less," she said. "Let's have one where we're driving down costs and increasing competition. Have the insurance companies compete in a way that they aren't right now."

So ... what does that mean?

full article
http://talkingpointsmemo.com/dc/republicans-obamacare-alternative

[Mass]

1. The Tea Party is balking at even bad options like high risk pools. They do not believe anything

should be done.

[global1]

2. The GOP Does Have An Alternative - It's Called The "Conservative Affordable Care Act" - aka.....

CACA.

[Cosmocat]

3. So, the clusterfuck that is "Obamacare"

and I support it because it is the best we can do, but it exactly what has LONG been put forward by republican's as their model for health care "reform" in this country - mandated insurance with "markets" to increase "competition" one step toward and about 100 short of the more common sense and obvious single payer system most countries utilize.

[DonViejo]

4. Just found this comment at TPM, under the article excerpted, above...

Found it to be fairly interesting and just wanted to share it with DU'ers. Sliding it in under your comment seemed an appropriate place to do it.

The Republicans have a problem because they chose to disown their alternative. What we now call "Obamacare" IS the Republican alternative -- call it "Heritagecare" because it was born in the bowels of the Heritage Foundation to be the alternative to Teddy Kennedy"s single payer "Medicare For All" in the early 1980s. Former Oregon Sen. Bob Packwood sponsored an Republican Conference outside the official state party that was a relatively progressive group of Republican. The Dorchester Conference debated Kennedy's Medicare For All and Heritage Foundation plan with its compulsory mandate and after lengthy discussion voted by a wide margin to support the Heritage Plan as the Republican Plan. It later became part of the State Republican Party's platform.

Of course, national Republicans -- by now shrunk to a less-than-national-party center in the South -- disowned it when the Black President in the White House claimed it for his own way to get health insurance to some 47 million uninsured Americans. And that's an accurate history. I was a reporter at the time and I covered it.

[Cosmocat]

6. RIGHT?

And, somehow the "liberal" media just gleefully plays along while they bash the bloody hell out of THEIR fricken plan.

[Myrina]

7. ^^ this ^^

n/t

[sakabatou]

5. This is their real alternative: Get sick and die.

[RBInMaine]

8. Tax credits, high risk pools, buying across state lines, and health savings accounts.

BUT, much of this is itself risky and expensive, doesn't place any standards on plans, and will leave millions uninsured. The health savings accounts are an especially funny joke.