A friend of mine is looking for health insurance. He got laid off (these things happen) and thus lost his employer-based health plan. He has a pre-existing condition. He's been turned down by Sanford, which needs to save its money to build sports complexes. He'll probably be turned down or charged impossible premiums by every other private insurer. To participate in the American health care system, he'll face two choices: become filthy rich or go bankrupt...
...at least until 2014, when the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act takes full effect. President Barack Obama and the 111th Congress's single greatest piece of legislation recognizes that health care does not work under free market rules. Health care is a community affair that works only when everybody helps everybody else. No citizens other than plutocrats like Mitt Romney can afford their own health care. The only feasible way for the vast majority of Americans to access health care is through cooperative insurance, where we all agree to pay for other folks' medical bills, in return for the assurance that when we get hurt or sick, other folks will chip in to cover us.
Private insurers pervert that system by denying that security to the folks who need it most, the folks who have been sick and who stand a greater chance of getting sick again and requiring our help.
The Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act fixes that problem. On September 23, 2010, it got rid of insurers' ability to exclude children from insurance coverage due to pre-existing conditions. On January 1, 2014, it will extend that sensible protection to Americans of all ages. If my job-seeking friend can hang on for fourteen months, he can walk back into Sanford and get a policy.
But not if we do something silly like elect Mitt Romney.
Not if we do something silly like re-elect Kristi Noem to keep voting to repeal the PPACA.
The Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act is one of the best things the Obama Administration has done for this country. It is helping more people than Mitt Romney and Kristi Noem ever will. When it takes full effect in 2014, the PPACA will help even more people, including my friend.
Don't let Mitt Romney and Kristi Noem shut it down. Vote accordingly.
A free and rational market is inclusive of all players who want to participate. The current market of mostly employer-based coverage (excluding the Medicare and Medicaid-based systems of course) is not a free market. A market based on the ability to increase profit by increasing production (more tests, procedures, etc) is not a rational market. Nothing against medical providers or insurance cos at all-they work in a market which has learned to game itself against loss for survival. The market is too big and too complex to be changed by anything other than a reset of the system. The ACA is a reset. It's not perfect but at least FINALLY making the transition to a logical market design. Lots of change and grumbling to come but we'll learn the new paradigm and one day laugh at how we used to depend on if we had a job to get health ins. Governor Daugaard now needs to accept (dare I say embrace?) this paradigm shift. SD has 1 of the tightest Medicaid eligibility parameters of any state. This is good for historic cost-savings for the state and budget. BUT-that philosphy (especially going forward) negatively impacts the health of the population. A good Republican understands the health of the workers is a significant factor in productivity. Embrace the paradigm or SD will suffer in the long run.
Good points, P. I agree that keeping Medicaid tight has health impacts. Expanding Medicaid could pay for itself.