Democrats Will Soon Regret That Republicans Failed To Repeal ObamaCare

Investor's Business Daily ^ | 7/18/207 | Staff

[IBD editorial writer]

Health Reform: There were lots of celebrations on the left side of the aisle after the Senate GOP bill to repeal and replace ObamaCare died. The good times will be short lived, because one way or another ObamaCare is going away, and it's not at all clear that Democrats will gain additional leverage over what comes next by waiting for its collapse.

It was amusing to hear Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer say, after the Senate bill failed, that Republicans should "work with Democrats on a bill that lowers premiums, provides long-term stability to the markets and improves our health care system."

Lower premiums, stabilize insurance markets, improve health care? Wasn't that what ObamaCare was supposed to do in the first place?

While Schumer and company were busy calling Republicans mass murderers, here's what was actually happening with ObamaCare.

The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services reports that the number of insurers applying to participate in ObamaCare exchanges next year plunged by 38% compared with last year, and is half what it was in 2016.

CMS also reported that 40 counties in Indiana, Ohio and Nevada are at risk of having zero insurance companies in their ObamaCare exchanges next year. The Kaiser Family Foundation put the number of at-risk counties at 38.

In addition, CMS reported that 2.4 million enrollees in 40% of the nation's counties will have just one insurance company in their area.

The average increase in premiums next year for a Silver plan in eight states will be 18%, according to Avalere. One of the last ObamaCare insurers in Iowa has put in for a 43.5% hike. In Washington state, the average boost is 22%. In Tennessee, the proposed rate hikes range from 21% to 42%. And so on.

[kosciusko51]

Waivers for everyone except federal government employees, including congress and their staffers.

[mewzilla]

I’ve never understood why, if Dems can and do support RINOs in Pubbie primaries, conservatives don’t find and run DINOs to run in ‘Rat primaries. Why fight half a battle?

[ArmstedFragg]

One of the things that struck me as I plodded through the original bill seven years ago was how much authority the administrator has. That’s what we were going to see put into use in the so-called “phase two” of repeal and replace, and it’s still available. I have a feeling a careful examination of all the flexibility the administrator has would reveal a significant number of areas where the most onerous parts of Obamacare could be mitigated. I hope that flexibility gets used to its fullest.

[Eric in the Ozarks]

Hold a vote on full repeal.
Republicans who vote against need to be singled out for public scorn.

[be-baw]

I wouldn’t call IBD a blog. Also I believe it’s on FR Copyright List and articles from there should be excerpted and not posted in their entirety, as you just did.

[USCG SimTech]

Doubt it. The Dems will not be blamed; the Reps will get the full blame for not “fixing” it. On to single payer which is the goal of the uniparty anyway.

Your are absolutely correct

Remember that the entire MSM will frame the movement of every molecule as the fault of the right, Trump and the Republicans.

[Bigg Red]

blog-pimpin’

[IamConservative]

Lower premiums, stabilize insurance markets, improve health care?

In the history of man in any form of government, what government program has ever lowered cost and improved quality?

Whatever happens, the media will blame the Republicans. It remains to be seen whether the voters hold them accountable or not. For me personally, it sure is making it hard to consider/plan retirement.

[Bernard]

Trump needs to revoke ALL of Obama’s exceptions.

AMEN!!!!! That needs to be the 2nd thing to fix Obamacare. #3 would be an executive order to make all members of congress, all congressional staffers, and all non-military federal government employees subject to every detail of Obamacare.

[Kozak]

Let it burn.

[ripley]

“The Dems will not be blamed.”

Absolutely.

The scu&bags in the Democrat party are well-versed in the art of propaganda and will manipulate opinions and facts to make it seem that the Republicans are at fault for a health care plan that was the ultimate in duplicity and perfidy, passed solely by Democrats.

(One must give the Democrats credit for being the best scu&bags that ever lived. If and when they gain absolute power, they will put Mr. Lenin and Heir Hitler to shame.)

IMHO

[BobL]

“Yea, somebody forgot to tell that to David Brat...”

That’s for sure. Amnesty would have been a ‘settled’ issue had Cantor not have been defeated. In fact, the entire US House of Representatives was secretly waiting for Cantor to swat that fly away (i.e., Dave Brat).

For people that don’t believe it was that close, just watch this Frontline from 3 years ago, when they were CONVINCED that Amnesty would pass, so they filmed the inner workings of Congress. It is ABSOLUTELY FRIGHTENING just how close the NeverTrumpers (before they were called that) came to passing Amnesty:

http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/frontline/film/immigration-battle/

[BobL]

“Yea, somebody forgot to tell that to David Brat...”

And the other thing to point out is that WE DO NOW HAVE A WEAPON that we never had before, and that is President Trump, who can go into a district and raise, probably close to a MILLION DOLLARS for a Primary opponent, just by showing up at an event. And he may well do just that.

[ExSES]

I think with healthcare...if you dissolved the state-line approach to it...you might buy some time.

Every State (DIM OR PUBBIE) has an entrenched Insurance Bureaucracy supported by special interests which will fight to the death over their "States Rights" when it comes to giving up the power to regulate insurance within their boundaries!

[bert]

I have wondered about the issue you raised

Under Obamacare, did the states control the product as before or were policies subject to state regulatory approval?

Was federal law imposed over state law when deciding the issue?

[freedomfiter2]

The best thing that could have happened would be a clean total repeal. The worst would be what the GOP was trying to pass. The second best is to do nothing. The Gop should be all over the airwaves declaring that they couldn’t fix Obama care because the Democrats wouldn’t help.

[spokeshave]

I’m leaning toward asteroid impact or Yellow Stone caldera eruption in 2018. Nothing else seems to faze the uniparty.

Ha..wait till the next global cooling cycle kicks in....sometime in Trump's second term

(Sun stopped making sunspots)

[ROCKLOBSTER]

(RINO’s)...few will actually be defeated in the primary. They have the money from special interests and the party. Challengers have trouble raising the big money needed to run a campaign.

Maybe if the President holds many in-state fundraiser/rallies for the opponents.

Open primaries need to be killed off. Sanctuary and big time voter-fraud cities need to have their ballot counts thrown out.

[spokeshave]

Yes. The reality s closer to the classic line about business: “High quality, Low price, Speedy execution — pick any two.”

But everyone always wants it all.

So how come Trump did the old post office re-building

Under budget

way ahead of schedule

and with upgraded interior (mostly top of the line Italian marble)

[yldstrk]

I am not satisfied with mine. I am self employed, paying Cobra to my ex’s law firm. It’s about 700 a month with an “administrative fee” of $125 in the 700. And it has a $6K deductible.

I never go to the doctor, but I am petrified to join one of the health sharing ministries because I don’t know if the “coverage” “this is not insurance” will protect me if I do get sick.