Obama Care/Health Care Bill
06-20-2011, 07:06 AM
#1
SDSU Basketball
Thread Starter
Obama Care/Health Care Bill
What do you Know about the health Care Bill?
Is it good or Bad for us?
Why Are Republicans so Bent on overturning Health Care Bill ?
Is it good or Bad for us?
Why Are Republicans so Bent on overturning Health Care Bill ?
06-20-2011, 08:36 AM
#2
it's my D in a B
I don't think it'll make a bit of difference to me since I can afford health insurance. There were times in my life when I couldn't afford it, and if I were forced to purchase insurance (as I believe this bill does), I would've been broke. I think the main thing republicans object to is the idea that the government is mandating people to do something that ought to be an individual choice and responsibility.
I don't even pretend to understand all the ins and outs of the bill. It sounds tremendously complicated.
I don't even pretend to understand all the ins and outs of the bill. It sounds tremendously complicated.
06-20-2011, 08:59 AM
#3
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06-20-2011, 10:18 AM
#5
BAZINGA!
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06-20-2011, 10:48 AM
#6
06-20-2011, 12:09 PM
#8
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SOMETHING has to change. People shouldn't have to go broke because they got sick or hurt. My roommate has no health insurance and got super 3-days-in-the-hospital-sick. I usually check the mail, and he's getting bill after bill after bill. So far, it's up to 14k. He'll either bail on paying it all and have his credit destroyed, or try and get in on a payment plan. For people that don't make a lot of money, your stay in the hospital can really set you back. 
06-20-2011, 12:41 PM
#9
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I know a fair bit about it, as I deal with it occasionally in my day-to-day work and I was getting my Master's in Public Health while it was being passed and it was a hot topic in a lot of a our classes.
Overall, I'm in favor of it. In the interests of full disclosure, I do work for a health insurance company (Kaiser Permanente Colorado) and we obviously stand to benefit from an increase in health insurance enrollments. Anything I say here is solely my views and does not represent my employer in any way.
The good: I think that it will help prevent people from going bankrupt due to medical bills, it will ensure that hospitals get paid for the services they render, and it will help increase the health of our nation. Dave, for people who really can't afford it (i.e those who make up to about 400% of the federal poverty level, currently around $43,000 for a single person), the bill offers a sliding scale of subsidies to help pay for it. The non-partisan Congressional Budget Office has estimated that it will slightly hold back the growth in health care costs (but not by much), and that it won't affect the majority of people's insurance premiums. A minority will see their premiums rise, but often this is a result of the bill requiring a higher "base" level of insurance than some people had, so these increases will also generally provide more services/coverage.
The bad: Even if/when fully implemented it will still leave millions of people uninsured due to exceptions and those who refuse to purchase insurance, though this number will be way less than it would have been without reform. I'm also not a huge fan of fining people who choose to forgo health insurance, but I understand that some mechanism is needed to encourage people to get health insurance. The CBO has also estimated that the bill will have some negative impact on the job market, due to companies being required to offer health insurance and reducing hiring instead. Additionally, while I'm in favor of the bill I'll admit that I don't know if the individual mandate to purchase insurance is constitutional.
Overall, it's very similar to the type of health care reform I would have wanted if I was coming up with my own reform bill. It's a way to get insurance to the masses, but without going for a government-run/single-payer system (a la Canada/UK). This will leave room for private companies to innovate and give consumers choice, hopefully allowing efficient insurers to rise to the top rather than allowing a .gov system to stagnate and bureaucratize.
For a relatively unbiased take on some of the claims coming from either side of the aisle on Health Care Reform, check out http://www.factcheck.org/tag/health-care-reform/. It's a non-partisan public-policy website that double checks a lot of claims and does a good job of tackling rhetoric from both parties.
Overall, I'm in favor of it. In the interests of full disclosure, I do work for a health insurance company (Kaiser Permanente Colorado) and we obviously stand to benefit from an increase in health insurance enrollments. Anything I say here is solely my views and does not represent my employer in any way.
The good: I think that it will help prevent people from going bankrupt due to medical bills, it will ensure that hospitals get paid for the services they render, and it will help increase the health of our nation. Dave, for people who really can't afford it (i.e those who make up to about 400% of the federal poverty level, currently around $43,000 for a single person), the bill offers a sliding scale of subsidies to help pay for it. The non-partisan Congressional Budget Office has estimated that it will slightly hold back the growth in health care costs (but not by much), and that it won't affect the majority of people's insurance premiums. A minority will see their premiums rise, but often this is a result of the bill requiring a higher "base" level of insurance than some people had, so these increases will also generally provide more services/coverage.
The bad: Even if/when fully implemented it will still leave millions of people uninsured due to exceptions and those who refuse to purchase insurance, though this number will be way less than it would have been without reform. I'm also not a huge fan of fining people who choose to forgo health insurance, but I understand that some mechanism is needed to encourage people to get health insurance. The CBO has also estimated that the bill will have some negative impact on the job market, due to companies being required to offer health insurance and reducing hiring instead. Additionally, while I'm in favor of the bill I'll admit that I don't know if the individual mandate to purchase insurance is constitutional.
Overall, it's very similar to the type of health care reform I would have wanted if I was coming up with my own reform bill. It's a way to get insurance to the masses, but without going for a government-run/single-payer system (a la Canada/UK). This will leave room for private companies to innovate and give consumers choice, hopefully allowing efficient insurers to rise to the top rather than allowing a .gov system to stagnate and bureaucratize.
For a relatively unbiased take on some of the claims coming from either side of the aisle on Health Care Reform, check out http://www.factcheck.org/tag/health-care-reform/. It's a non-partisan public-policy website that double checks a lot of claims and does a good job of tackling rhetoric from both parties.
Last edited by JGordon; 06-20-2011 at 12:42 PM.
06-20-2011, 12:42 PM
#10
Nobama
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SOMETHING has to change. People shouldn't have to go broke because they got sick or hurt. My roommate has no health insurance and got super 3-days-in-the-hospital-sick. I usually check the mail, and he's getting bill after bill after bill. So far, it's up to 14k. He'll either bail on paying it all and have his credit destroyed, or try and get in on a payment plan. For people that don't make a lot of money, your stay in the hospital can really set you back.
Bottom line: Health insurance is availible to limit your liability, if someone doesn't have it, they will still receive medical attention (as stated above).
You make the choice as to whether you want to insure yourself, not the government.