A Boat Load of Obamacare Schadenfreude

It got out of hand again, dammit!

A frequent  Democratic argument is that the number of people who will lose their insurance if Obamacare is repealed is unacceptable, bolstered by a new CBO report which considers the repeal without any Republican replacement. PRINTED IN LARGE, FRIENDLY LETTERS: Don’t Panic Over the CBO Repeal Report.  The Sneaky Democratic Politics Behind the Scary New Obamacare Numbers. Don Surber explains why the  Number of people who will lose health care upon repeal is zero

. . . Just remember the figure that 30 million will lose their health care under the repeal is hysterically wrong.

The number is zero.

Congress repealing Obamacare cancels zero health insurance policies.

But it does allow people who do not want the coverage to drop it.

We call that freedom.

The Shark Tank reports on how Republicans Expedite Obamacare’s Repeal, Democrats Plan Protests. When all you have is a hammer. . . If You Like It, You Can Keep It (And This Time We Mean It)
Senators' ACA replacement proposal allows states to keep Obamacare or replace it. Rand Paul unveils his “Obamacare Replacement Act”

• A tax credit of up to $5,000 per individual that could be used as part of a Health Savings Account
• Eliminates minimum standards that health insurance companies had to meet under Obamacare, which would open the door for more affordable, yet less comprehensive plans
• Would allow insurance companies to sell plans across state linesA two-year window for those with pre-existing conditions to get healthcare, after which those with such conditions could still get coverage in group plans
• A two-year window for those with pre-existing conditions to get healthcare, after which those with such conditions could still get coverage in group plans

McConnell: “ObamaCare status quo is completely unsustainable” Black holes aren't sustainable? Who knew? Infographic: Ohio’s Obamacare “success”: Click to enlarge. Pretty grim.

Meanwhile the GOP Acknowledges It Won’t Meet Self-Imposed Deadline to Repeal Obamacare. Please take the time to do it right, unlike the Democrats. On his first day in office, Donald Trump signed an executive order not to enforce the individual mandate. It is no mere sop to his supporters nor is it a symbolic gesture.

The mostly sensible Megan McArdle debunks a favorite liberal meme,  The Myth of the Medical Bankruptcy

From WaPO, Judge says Aetna dropped out of some Obamacare markets to help win its merger fight. But, as cited by Wombat-socho in "In The Mailbox: 01.25.17" Megan explains how Aetna Threatened Obamacare, But Didn’t Start The Fight.

The Atlantic asks if  Republicans repeal Obamacare without imposing the greatest costs on the older, white, blue-collar voters who put Trump into office? in The Trumpcare Conundrum, while Dustbury explains Why there will be no TrumpCare. Report: 300,000 Small Business Jobs Lost Due to Obamacare - Over 10,000 small business establishments shut down due to health care law. Is that all? The STUMP explains that  If there’s one thing actuaries are really good at, it’s being annoying.

Richard Foster, former chief actuary of Medicare, managed to annoy both the Republicans and Democrats in exposing costs they didn’t want exposed. What I linked above has to do with Foster’s remarks on the Affordable Care Act and the claims being made about effects on Medicare and Medicaid.

For many, problems with Obamacare are personal, not partisan

“It’s worked out wonderfully for lots of people. I do feel it’s certainly a step in the right direction,” says Richards, a self-employed director and producer. “But at the same time, there’s terrible flaws in the system. Nobody should have to go through hell to get medical insurance.”

Yeah, you let the same people who run DMV regulate your health care. As Insty points out:

The Christian Science Monitor says for many folks the problems with ObamaCare are personal, not political. Well, of course. This article attempts to give pro and con positions a fair shake, but dances around the fact the government forced many citizens to buy a product they didn’t want.

My Lyft Ride with a Black Trump Supporter on MLK Day

What about Obamacare?

Explosion.

“Don’t get me started. My premiums are through the roof. I can’t afford it. Because I drive all day and night making money, I’m not poor enough to get any subsidies. So this year I’m going to have to pay $750 on my tax return because I can’t afford to buy insurance. But I can’t afford the health care either! And have you seen those deductibles? If anything should happen to you, you go bankrupt. I’ll tell you who benefited from Obamacare. Not the poor. It’s the insurance companies and the government.”

I pointed out that Hillary Clinton said she would try to improve it.

“You kidding? The whole campaign, she defended all this #@#$!. She is just like the rest of these people, all talk, no action, just like Trump said. She has been pushing a pen for 30 years. She is not affected by high premiums. Her health care is covered. She has no idea what the rest of us are going through.”

Tucker Carlson talks to Obamacare Architect Gruber, and elicits an admission: ‘This Law Was Never Supposed to Help Everybody’. Yep, somebody had to pay.