The Supreme Court has taken up the health care issue.
More than two dozen states are challenging aspects of the Affordable Care Act. Much of the law has yet to be implemented, and there were many questions about whether challenging it now is even legal. That may constitute opposition to a tax before imposition of the tax.
There is a good chance portions of the law may be repealed, but there are possibilities some of it may be preserved. That would leave i up to the next Congress to come up with something that works.
Let's look at some of the things the Affordable Care Act has already accomplished. Several million young adults who grew up with health insurance have gained the option of staying on their parents' plans thru age 25. Many parents are gladly paying the extra premiums for the added peace of mind.
Preventive health screenings that were once limited to public health clients are now more broadly available; and some insurance carriers have added a portability clause to their coverage and dramatically reduced exclusions for preexisting conditions.
But opponents of the health care plan continue to ignore the 800 lbs gorilla in the room.
Uncompensated care is not free. The millions of avoidable emergency room visits that occur each year are just part of the costly care we all pay for each year with our tax dollars. Some of the costs are covered with higher insurance premiums.
Sometimes it seems like the opposition to the Affordable Care Act has a lot more to do with the fixation to defeating President Obama than it could possibly have to do with opposing legislation that could help unclog emergency rooms, end the practice of hospitals keeping multiple sets of books and allow dependent care rules to reflect the realities of the young adults who remain in our households.
If they want to call it Obamacare, that's fine, but millions of Americans have already seen their lives and the lives of their children change for the better as a result of measures that have already taken effect.
This case won't be decided until June, but, if repeal is the course, family healthcare for many will take a huge step backward.
More than two dozen states are challenging aspects of the Affordable Care Act. Much of the law has yet to be implemented, and there were many questions about whether challenging it now is even legal. That may constitute opposition to a tax before imposition of the tax.
There is a good chance portions of the law may be repealed, but there are possibilities some of it may be preserved. That would leave i up to the next Congress to come up with something that works.
Preventive health screenings that were once limited to public health clients are now more broadly available; and some insurance carriers have added a portability clause to their coverage and dramatically reduced exclusions for preexisting conditions.
But opponents of the health care plan continue to ignore the 800 lbs gorilla in the room.
Uncompensated care is not free. The millions of avoidable emergency room visits that occur each year are just part of the costly care we all pay for each year with our tax dollars. Some of the costs are covered with higher insurance premiums.
Sometimes it seems like the opposition to the Affordable Care Act has a lot more to do with the fixation to defeating President Obama than it could possibly have to do with opposing legislation that could help unclog emergency rooms, end the practice of hospitals keeping multiple sets of books and allow dependent care rules to reflect the realities of the young adults who remain in our households.
If they want to call it Obamacare, that's fine, but millions of Americans have already seen their lives and the lives of their children change for the better as a result of measures that have already taken effect.
This case won't be decided until June, but, if repeal is the course, family healthcare for many will take a huge step backward.
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