I'm doing a project on the Affordable Care Act, otherwise known as Obamacare. The more I read and learn about it, the more baffled I am at the white-hot hatred that the Act inspires.I get that there were many back-room deals made in getting it passed, especially after Obama said that he was not a back-room deal kind of guy... so he lied about that, or well, maybe he was a little idealistic in thinking that this sort of thing could be done without cutting deals.
Yeah, that's irritating. And that whole Nebraska thing is annoying. But that's not enough to cause this burning fury that people have.
When I first looked at the reforms, I thought that most of them were really good ideas. But people were so hopping mad about it, I thought maybe that I was missing something. Or, maybe there was loophole or extra measure buried in the 2,000 pages that I didn't know about. Now that I'm doing this project, however, I kind of think that I'm more educated about this than the average person, and I still think the reforms are pretty good.
Is it an ideological thing? Like, it's not the purpose of government to meddle in healthcare? Did they think that the private insurance companies really were doing a spectacular job and the government is going to screw up a good thing?
I get that the United States has the best facilities and healthcare options available, and we got that way by having a free market, but we continue to rank in the 30's and 40's for all healthcare markers. What good are all those state-of-the-art MRI machines if they are not making us healthier? Why is President Obama such a villain for trying to fix a system that is obviously broken? I don't get it.
3 comments:
I basically agree with you even though I don't even remember much about what actually passed anymore, but I'll try to see the other side. 2 thoughts, if you're really asking.
1. There is a considerable amount of skepticism with the government. Not just that they might meddle, but that they'll still manage to get it wrong in practice while at the same time spending too much.
2. I think that many people whine about it because they are only interested in their bottom line and they think they might be subsidizing someone else. Essentially, "I guess it would be nice if... but I don't want to be left paying that bill".
A quick google search gave me this read.
Now I have no idea what is true or not and I'm no lawyer. But it certainly casts things in another light.
I agree with what's been said. I think we see that the government tends to not manage anything efficiently.
I feel conflicted about some of the provisions. Like, Caitlin couldn't get insured, but with Obamacare she can get insurance. (something like that) Well, who doesn't want insurance for Caitlin? On the other hand, I don't want my personal premiums to go way up.
People without insurance use the Emergency Room as their own personal family practice doctor. That burdens the system and causes huge expenses. So, would it be cheaper to provide insurance to those people? On the other hand, why do I pay for my insurance, but they don't? (insert anger here)
See.... conflicted.
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