The Obamacare Repeal Movement, Now Doomed, Will Never Entirely Go Away

[DonViejo]

PHILIP BUMP

In five days, millions of people who aren't currently insured will suddenly have health care coverage under Obamacare. This puts Republican opponents of the program in a difficult position. If you've been railing against people getting kicked off of their plans, what do you do next? The best political answer may be simple. Nothing different.

The New York Times reports that Republicans aren't entirely sure what to do at this point, but are facing pressure to do something. After months of campaigning against the Affordable Care Act and in the wake of the law's fumbled implementation, Republican voters expect action — "nearly two-thirds of Republicans wanted to have the Affordable Care Act repealed," the paper reports, "and most Republican lawmakers are appealing to those constituents." There are some Republican proposals in the works that would change the policy: Georgia Rep. Tom Price proposes scrapping the law, but keeping the pre-existing condition requirement; Wisconsin's Paul Ryan is coming out with a plan soon. Neither would be signed into law, and, The Times notes, Republican approval on health care is even lower than President Obama's.

Leading to the fundamental question, as articulated by South Carolina Sen. Lindsey Graham:

"The hardest problem for us is what to do next,” Mr. Graham said. “Should we just get out of the way and point out horror stories? … You become a more effective critic when you say, ‘Here’s what I’m for,’ and we’re not there yet. So there’s our struggle."

full article
http://www.thewire.com/politics/2013/12/obamacare-repeal-movement-now-doomed-will-never-entirely-go-away/356522/

[Rozlee]

1. Red states Kentucky and West Virginia have benefitted greatly from the ACA.

I have relatives in WV who are staunch religious conservatives and now have health coverage through Extended Medicaid. Kentucky is an ACA success story. Like the op writer pointed out, repealing the law is hard once people have benefitted from it. My poor kin folk in rural WV might rail against Obama, but if Republicans come after their Extended Medicaid, I'll bet they'll be infuriated. My diabetic ex-daughter-in-law's leg was saved from amputation due to the specialists she's been able to see since she went on the program in its infancy in 2011 and she's been kept from dialysis with frequent visits to nephrologists. Before, she was on the WV indigent medical program that had waiting lists that were several weeks or months long. The rest of my grandson's family up there are likewise benefitting from life-saving medical care. Republicans can no longer stick the public health care genie back in the lamp. Especially with nothing concrete to offer themselves.

[RBInMaine]

5. Just like they say they "HATE SOCIALISM" but LLLLLLLLLLLLOVE THEIR Medicare and Social Security.

[Rozlee]

6. And now their Extended Medicaid.

[CTyankee]

2. You are probably right. As late as 2005 GWB was trying to privatize Social Security...

every few years some new repub idiot comes up with a lame-ass idea to get rid of SS or Medicare and the AMerican people throw them out on their ear...but a whole new crop of repub jerks take their place a few years later. It's like watching Roadrunner cartoons over and over again...

[RDANGELO]

3. The Republicans have been telling everyone that they can substantially increase the number of

insured and bring down the costs with just market reforms, even though no other country has been able to do that. There have been a couple of instances when those type of plans have been studied by CBO ,and the results were that there was no substantial increase in the number of people insured ,and no substantial curb on costs.

What this means is, if the ACA becomes acceptable to our society that the Republicans will in the pickle of promoting the repeal of Obamacare, but not being able to come up with an alternative that the CBO says will work, without exposing there position as a fraud.

This is part of the reason they have not come up with an alternative.

The last two months the economy has created over 200,000 jobs. If this continues it could be a plus for the Democrats, and the Republicans, who have been gambling everything on the demise of the ACA will be politically bankrupt.

[Wounded Bear]

8. Key phrase there is "telling everyone"...

All they've reallly done is talk, and spew talking points at that. They have proposed nothing in the way of an alternative.

Republicans don't solve problems, they exploit them for personal and political gain.

[Sunlei]

4. who cares what Republicans say. The people who actually have the new ACA insurance will keep it.

AND we WILL continue to improve on the insurance to the benefit of 'the people'. R politicans act like they work for the 'for profit' drug and insurance corps. Now we need to cut out those insurance company middlemen and all that admin. cost. let people go directly to any Doctor or hospital. non-profit Medicaid for all.

By the way it's time for free lunch and breakfast to all school children. Cut out all those for profit middlemen and admin. costs too. save more billions of our federal/state dollars.

[Proud Liberal Dem]

7. Quick question:

Didn't the Republicans basically paint themselves into a corner by raising such a hue and cry over the whole "If you like your plan, you can keep it" and proposing legislative changes to fix that (which basically died as soon as President Obama fixed it administratively)? Now, when people's newly acquired plans go into effect, the Republicans will be saying, "If you like your plan, we'll take it away from you"?