It would seem counter intuitive to force a comparison of the GOP health care plan to the Democratic efforts in congress, but that's exactly what the Republicans did anyway. Counting on the media's lack of interest, Republicans chanced revealing the massive shortfalls in their version of "reform" so they could cherry pick the pluses. It's a strategy that is working.
I had to search long and hard to find a credible news sources critique of the latest right wing folly. What I did find is the following jaw dropping inhumanity and a ruthless disregard for the sick and dying. Behold the Examiners dissection:
The bill starts with the promise of a lower cost: It has the potential to lower the cost on the premiums on healthier customers, but allows increased premiums on customers with poorer health and higher health risks, despite the individual’s lack of ability to alter their condition.
It does include opening up insurance across state lines … However, without the removal of the anti-trust exemption which the health insurance industry presently enjoys, the insurance companies can just negotiate their desired rates and profits amongst themselves, thereby removing the cost control created by increasing supposed competition.
The GOP bill does not stop insurance companies from dropping customers and denying legitimate claims to customers due to insurance company self-proclaimed pre-existing conditions. This legislation does not even set parameters on what is and what is not a pre-existing condition. Consequently, the insurance companies will continue their expansion of the definition of “pre-existing condition” as they have thus far done against victims of rape and domestic abuse.
The most crucial reason as to why we need health insurance reform is virtually ignored by the GOP bill. This bill does little to provide insurance to the uninsured, and will actually increase the number of uninsured to 52 million by 2019. In turn, this will dramatically increase the cost of emergency care for the uninsured. As a result, most likely any savings to premiums for those with insurance will in the end have to be paid through the increase in taxes needed to pay for emergency services for the uninsured.
Tragically, under this plan the number of Americans who die just because they do not have health insurance that could circumvent easily preventable fatalities will surely increase respectively. Presently 45,000 Americans die each year from ailments that could be avoided … How many more would it be under GOP legislation?
The GOP bill does nothing to address the all too silent issue of the under insured.
In the end, this legislation proposed by the Republican Party is merely their attempt to derail the Democratic plan and a public insurance option. Why else would they wait to release a bill, and an ineffectual one at that, just as the final bills within each of the chambers are being debated?
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