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outlier -> Trumpcare vs Obamacare (11/9/2016 4:22:51 PM)
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Medscape is a website for medical professionals.
They sometimes put up articles that are avaliable
to the public without a membership requirement.
Today they posted this: Trump Wins Presidency and Chance to Dump ACA
"In Obama's successful reelection 4 years ago, the economy and jobs weighed on voters' minds more than anything else. In 2016, those concerns took second place to the candidates' personal characteristics, according to a tracking poll conducted last month by the Kaiser Family Foundation (KFF).
Healthcare ranked low on the list of issues of utmost importance to voters in 2016, the KFF survey revealed, and "Obamacare" ranked even lower. When asked what should be a top healthcare priority for the next president and Congress, respondents put these three first — ensuring that high-cost drugs for chronic conditions such as hepatitis and cancer become affordable (74%), lowering prescription drug costs in general (63%), and making sure health plans have enough physicians and hospitals in their networks (57%). Only 37% said repealing the ACA should be the first order of business. And in another set of questions, more respondents said the ACA should be preserved as-is or even expanded (49%) rather than scaled back or junked (41%).
Most of Trump's healthcare pronouncements have focused on the ACA, which he wants Congress to repeal in its entirety. He nevertheless has publicly advocated for healthcare that is more accessible, affordable, and of higher quality. "We must...make sure that no one slips through the cracks simply because they cannot afford insurance," states his campaign website.
One of his most touted prescriptions for healthcare is allowing insurers to sell their policies across state lines. The policy is intended to promote competition and reduce premiums. Two other fixes are allowing individuals to use pretax dollars to purchase coverage and to open health savings accounts, which Trump said would appeal to young healthy Americans who can afford high-deductible insurance plans.
Trump vows to improve Medicaid by contributing federal dollars to state programs in the form of block grants. Like other Republicans, he contends that block grants will give states their rightful say-so in how to spend the money. At the same time, Trump says that the jobs created during his administration will lessen public dependence on Medicaid as well as the Childrens Health Insurance Program.
In a nod toward free-market consumerism, Trump wants to require physicians and hospitals to be transparent about what they charge so that patients can shop for the best prices. Similarly, Trump proposes to give Americans the option to import less expensive drugs from other nations as long as they are safe and dependable.
How much Trump can accomplish, again, will depend on whether Congressional gridlock persists or breaks up. However, the RAND Corporation determined that if Trump's key healthcare proposals were enacted, an estimated 25 million people would lose coverage and the federal government would lose up to $40 billion in 2018.
"Trumpcare" could end up being as contentious as Obamacare."
So we will have 25 million people without care and having to shop at market rates in a
marketplace where the insurance companies can choose not to insure preexisting conditions.
Just as the insurance companies did before Obamacare. Or they can just offer coverage
at rates no one can afford. My advice, stay healthy everyone.
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