The Affordable Care Act contains many popular provisions that are now in effect, which include prohibiting denial of coverage for children because of preexisting conditions, rescission of a policy after a person becomes sick, and a lifetime cap on the amount insurers pay for medical care. Children are able to remain on their parents’ policies until they turn 26. Insurers must spend at least 80% of their premium income on medical care and quality improvements. And small businesses are entitled to federal tax credits to help them provide coverage to employees.
It is worth asking why Republicans want to repeal these provisions, particularly when they admit that they have no coherent plan to replace the current law. If the Affordable Care Act will help reduce the deficit, will not "kill jobs," and will provide better coverage for more people, what do Republicans have against it? The answer, when you clear away the falsehoods, becomes self-evident. As Paul Krugman bluntly put it: "They’re against reform because it would cover the uninsured — and that’s something they just don’t want to do."
This would seem to be a perfect opportunity for Democrats to educate the public about health care reform and highlight Republican hypocrisy. Remarkably, as The New York Times reports, the Democrats are planning to do just that. They intend to mount a vigorous defense, which will include a rapid response operation to monitor Republican claims, phone-banking, special events and paid TV advertisements. The Democratic National Committee has produced detailed talking points which, after spelling out the many ways in which the Affordable Care Act provides Americans with more freedom and control in their health care choices, emphasizes Republican bias towards insurance companies:
- Now, Republicans in Congress want to unravel the law that holds insurance companies in check.
- The insurance company lobbyists are working overtime with Republicans to return to the days when insurance companies were free to do whatever they want, including raising premiums and imposing higher costs on families and businesses to protect their CEO bonuses and corporate profits.
- Republicans will allow insurance companies to once again DENY coverage to children with existing conditions, CANCEL coverage when people get sick, and LIMIT the amount of care you can get − even if you need it.
- When the insurance companies are free to pursue their profits without any accountability, people have fewer choices, fewer options, and little recourse.
- And, by rolling back the Affordable Care Act, Republicans are adding a TRILLION dollars to the deficit.
- They would give back to insurance companies subsidies of hundreds of billions of taxpayer dollars. And they would cut back on efforts in the law to stop waste, fraud, and abuse in government spending. We can NOT afford to add another trillion dollars in debt that our children and grandchildren will have to pay - especially when it goes to wasteful spending and outrageous subsides for insurance companies.
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