Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
Perspectives On Repealing, Delaying, Replacing... How Might This All Work?
The New York Times: Want To Get Rid Of Obamacare? Be Careful What You Wish For
Opponents of the Affordable Care Act have denounced it bitterly for more than six years, so it is not surprising that, despite the program’s successes, public opinion about it would be divided. Even so, a repeal would unleash the awesome power of loss aversion, among the more deeply rooted human tendencies known to behavioral scientists. Their consistent finding: The amount of effort people will expend to resist being stripped of something they already possess is significantly larger than the effort they will devote to acquiring something they don’t already have. (Robert H. Frank, 12/16)
Bloomberg: 'Repealing' Obamacare Without Repealing It
Long before Obamacare, the federal government had been subsidizing health insurance for scores of millions of Americans. The law expanded that subsidization to cover several million more people. ... But the Obamacare law also, for the first time, made the federal government the chief regulator of health insurance. And these regulations are responsible for nearly all the uproar about the law. ... The Republicans are thinking of leaving Obamacare’s regulations in place because they fear that a bill altering them would die in a filibuster. They are sure they can use a procedure for avoiding filibusters if they target only the law’s tax and spending provisions. This course could cause the insurance exchanges, already in trouble, to collapse entirely. (Ramesh Ponnuru, 12/16)
USA Today: Repeal And Delay Obamacare Is A Cop-Out: Our View
Defunding the health law through a budgetary process known as reconciliation would be easy enough: It takes only a simple majority in both chambers of Congress. But this would wreak havoc on the American health care system. As a coalition of hospitals made clear recently, it would unleash an “unprecedented public health crisis” as uninsured patients pour into emergency rooms. (12/18)
USA Today: Obamacare Must Be Repealed, Replaced
Every day I hear from Ohioans and families nationwide who are paying higher premiums, losing access to their doctors, and paying more for less quality care under Obamacare. My colleagues and I are listening to these stories, but you also don’t need to look any further than the pages of USA TODAY to find evidence of Obamacare’s broken promises. (Rep. Pat Tiberi, R-Ohio, 12/19)
The Washington Post: Why Do Republicans Want To Repeal Obamacare So Much? Because It Would Be A Big Tax Cut For The Rich.
There are going to be so many tax cuts for the rich, you're going to get tired of tax cuts for the rich. You're going to say, “Mr. President, please don't cut taxes for the rich so much, this is getting terrible.” And it will start when Republicans repeal Obamacare. (Matt O'Brien, 12/16)
The Washington Post: How Exactly Does This New Health-Care Plan Get Passed?
GOP House and Senate leadership are bent on repealing Obamacare in January, cutting off its funding and then delaying the repeal for a few years until they can come up with something to replace it. If they go into the 2018 election with no health-care substitute passed, Republicans are likely to take a beating from voters who feel that they’ve “lost” health-care insurance and not gotten anything better. House and Senate leaders are convinced they can face the voters without a replacement and then pick up extra votes to pass it in an election in which Democrats must defend 23 seats. It’s not clear their members will go along. (Jennifer Rubin, 12/16)
Orlando Sentinel: Diagnosis For Chaos: Obamacare Repeal Without Alternative. Where We Stand
Florida Gov. Rick Scott is among Republican leaders champing at the bit for President-elect Donald Trump to repeal the Affordable Care Act, President Obama's signature health-care law. "Day one would be nice for me," Scott said Tuesday after meeting with Trump's pick to lead the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Republican Congressman Tom Price of Georgia. Rapid repeal would cap an ideological triumph for Scott, who broke into politics as a fierce critic of Obamacare. But it could turn into a tragedy for more than a million of his constituents. (12/17)
Detroit Free Press: Beyond Obamacare: What The ACA Has Meant For Michigan
Michigan has always done better by its citizens than most other states when it comes to health care and health insurance. Even before the Affordable Care Act (ACA), Michigan had more people insured than most states and lower average health care spending. Michigan has been characterized by innovation and collaboration when it comes to the design and implementation of health care programs and coverage. (Marianne Udow-Phillips, 12/18)
Forbes: What Happens To Long-Term Care If Trump Remakes Medicare And Medicaid?
Washington is buzzing with speculation about how President-elect Donald Trump and the Republican majority in Congress will remake Medicare and Medicaid. But neither the incoming administration nor the Hill GOP is giving much thought to what those changes would mean for frail older adults and younger people with disabilities. By failing to do so, they are creating a potential crisis and missing an opportunity. (Howard Gleckman, 12/16)
Modern Healthcare: Words Of Wisdom For 2017: 'The Healthcare Industry Is Headed For Turbulent Times.'
Probably the best thing that can be said about 2016 is that it's finally over. Alas, 2017 doesn't hold much promise, either. The healthcare industry is headed for turbulent times. The Affordable Care Act, which provided more than 20 million Americans with health insurance coverage and is having another record-breaking sign-up season despite the election results, appears headed for extinction. What it will be replaced with exactly, no one knows. (Merrill Goozner, 12/17)
