The White House On Health Care Offense.

[babylonsister]

http://www.prospect.org/csnc/blogs/tapped_archive?month=01&year=2011&base_name=the_white_house_on_health_care

The White House On Health Care Offense.


As the House prepares to vote on the "Repeal the Puppy-Strangling Job-Vivisecting O-Commie-Care Act," or whatever they're now calling it, the White House and its allies actually seem to have their act together when it comes to fighting this war for public opinion. The lastest is an analysis from the Department of Health and Human Services on just how many people have pre-existing conditions, and thus will be protected from denials of health insurance when the Affordable Care Act goes fully into effect in 2014:

According to a new analysis by the Department of Health and Human Services, 50 to 129 million (19 to 50 percent of) non-elderly Americans have some type of pre-existing health condition. Up to one in five non-elderly Americans with a pre-existing condition – 25 million individuals – is uninsured. Under the Affordable Care Act, starting in 2014, these Americans cannot be denied coverage, be charged significantly higher premiums, be subjected to an extended waiting period, or have their benefits curtailed by insurance companies.

As many as 82 million Americans with employer-based coverage have a pre-existing condition, ranging from life-threatening illnesses like cancer to chronic conditions like diabetes, asthma, or heart disease. Without the Affordable Care Act, such conditions limit the ability to obtain affordable health insurance if they become self-employed, take a job with a company that does not offer coverage, or experience a change in life circumstance, such as divorce, retirement, or moving to a different state. Older Americans between ages 55 and 64 are at particular risk: 48 to 86 percent of people in that age bracket have some type of pre-existing condition. And 15 to 30 percent of people in perfectly good health today are likely to develop a pre-existing condition over the next eight years, severely limiting their choices without the protections of the Affordable Care Act.

Naturally, Republicans are steamed that the White House would engage in what one GOP House aide contemptuously called "politics and public relations." So let's get down to brass tacks. If the Republicans want to help people with pre-existing conditions, they ought to say exactly how they're going to do it. Everyone who's at all serious about health care understands that you can't cover those who are expensive (i.e. those who are sick or who are likely to get sick) at anything like a reasonable cost without pooling them together with those who are cheap (i.e. the relatively young and healthy). That's why "high risk pools" that cover only those who are hard to insure just don't work -- they're far too expensive, and manage to cover only a small portion of those who need it. So what's the Republican solution? Let's hear it. They wanted to have this debate, so let's talk about the "replace" part of their "repeal and replace" strategy.

The problem is, you just can't require insurance companies to insure everyone if there's no individual mandate. It just doesn't work. I think most Republicans who have thought about it for more than a moment or two know this. My guess is they're hoping to get this repeal debate over quickly -- they promised to hold the vote, so they're going to hold it -- then they'll go back to talking about the need for tax cuts.

-- Paul Waldman

[DCKit]

1. An interesting trial for the "Party of No Ideas".

Already, they're calling for the President to set the agenda. They don't want to take responsibility for anything - or even appear to be responsible for anything - that happens between now and 2012.

Cue the circus music.

[DJ13]

2. you just can't require insurance companies to insure everyone if there's no individual mandate

BS

Just add a % or two to the income tax and set up a single payer system.

The problem with the individual mandate is the "individual" part.

Government legislated health care should be a shared commitment by all citizens like every other first world country.

[jenmito]

3. K&R. Let the games begin!

[karynnj]

4. This is utter chutzpah - they spent 2 years lying about what is in the HCR bill and now say

it is wrong for thr President and the administration to trumpet the good parts of the bill. How on earth is this wrong.

"Naturally, Republicans are steamed that the White House would engage in what one GOP House aide contemptuously called "politics and public relations." Not to mention, the President IS a politician and engaging in politics is part of what he and any politician do.