Thursday, March 28, 2024
Hawai'i Free Press

Current Articles | Archives

Friday, January 6, 2017
Out with Obamacare…In with Trumpcare?
By Grassroot Institute @ 7:48 PM :: 4199 Views :: Health Care

Out with Obamacare…In with Trumpcare?

by Keli'i Akina, Ph.D., Grassroot Institute, Jan 6, 2017

Out with Obamacare…In with Trumpcare?

As we transition from President Obama’s administration to that of President-elect Trump, one of the most pressing issues facing the nation is the role of government in providing healthcare coverage to citizens.

At the moment, the big question from Washington, D.C. is about whether Congress will try to repeal the Affordable Care Act…and what form such a repeal will take.

Lost in the political debate, however, is a philosophical one that remains unsettled: What should the government’s role be when it comes to ensuring healthcare access for its citizens?

For a long time, progressives have pointed to examples from Europe and Canada and promised that it is possible to provide every American with affordable health care. Others have warned that such a healthcare plan would come with a high price, both literally and in terms of quality of care.

The full discussion on Obamacare never transpired, as the legislation was pushed through Congress so quickly that some members admitted that they didn’t have time to read the full bill before voting. In the years since, Americans have had to learn about the problems with Obamacare though harsh experience…and many haven’t enjoyed the lesson at all.

  • The individual mandate used the power of the federal government to force compliance.
  • Many lost existing coverage as the ACA changed the landscape of health insurance.
  • Promises that you wouldn’t have to change doctors turned out to be completely false. (One comedian summed it up as, “Obamacare: If you like your doctor, you’ll probably like your new doctor.”)
  • The state exchanges on which the experiment depended failed, didn’t materialize, and created a number of legal battles.
  • Doctors have left their practices (or refused to participate) over the bureaucratization of medicine.
  • The “affordable” element disappeared for many when premiums shot up this year.

And that’s just the tip of the iceberg.

This has been especially difficult to watch from Hawaii. Before Obamacare, our state enjoyed one of the best rates of healthcare coverage in the country. Then came the dismal failure of the Hawaii Health Connector, which cost more than $200 million and under-performed so badly that it was shut down in 2015.

As the people of Maui (still waiting for their new hospital) could tell you, there’s a difference between health insurance and healthcare access. And throwing money at the one won’t necessarily fix the other.
President-elect Trump has promised that he will replace the Affordable Care Act with something better. What that will be remains to be seen, but a new administration represents an opportunity to fix a system that began as an expensive mess and has only devolved from there.

My hope is that this time, we can proceed thoughtfully, with the courage to consider bold, long-term solutions. In fact, that’s one of the themes of our upcoming luncheons on Oahu and Maui with Dr. John Goodman. One of the nation’s most influential thinkers on healthcare policy, Dr. Goodman believes that Trump’s plan to replace Obamacare falls short. I look forward to hearing his thoughts on whether Obamacare will truly be repealed and hope that you will be able to join us!

---30---

Links

TEXT "follow HawaiiFreePress" to 40404

Register to Vote

2aHawaii

808 Silent Majority

Aloha Pregnancy Care Center

AntiPlanner

Antonio Gramsci Reading List

A Place for Women in Waipio

Ballotpedia Hawaii

Broken Trust

Build More Hawaiian Homes Working Group

Christian Homeschoolers of Hawaii

Cliff Slater's Second Opinion

DVids Hawaii

FIRE

Fix Oahu!

Frontline: The Fixers

Genetic Literacy Project

Grassroot Institute

Habele.org

Hawaii Aquarium Fish Report

Hawaii Aviation Preservation Society

Hawaii Catholic TV

Hawaii Christian Coalition

Hawaii Cigar Association

Hawaii ConCon Info

Hawaii Debt Clock

Hawaii Defense Foundation

Hawaii Family Forum

Hawaii Farmers and Ranchers United

Hawaii Farmer's Daughter

Hawaii Federalist Society

Hawaii Federation of Republican Women

Hawaii History Blog

Hawaii Homeschool Association

Hawaii Jihadi Trial

Hawaii Legal News

Hawaii Legal Short-Term Rental Alliance

Hawaii Matters

Hawaii's Partnership for Appropriate & Compassionate Care

Hawaii Public Charter School Network

Hawaii Rifle Association

Hawaii Shippers Council

Hawaii Smokers Alliance

Hawaii State Data Lab

Hawaii Together

HIEC.Coop

HiFiCo

Hiram Fong Papers

Homeschool Legal Defense Hawaii

Honolulu Moms for Liberty

Honolulu Navy League

Honolulu Traffic

House Minority Blog

Imua TMT

Inouye-Kwock, NYT 1992

Inside the Nature Conservancy

Inverse Condemnation

Investigative Project on Terrorism

July 4 in Hawaii

Kakaako Cares

Keep Hawaii's Heroes

Land and Power in Hawaii

Legislative Committee Analysis Tool

Lessons in Firearm Education

Lingle Years

Managed Care Matters -- Hawaii

Malama Pregnancy Center of Maui

MentalIllnessPolicy.org

Military Home Educators' Network Oahu

Missile Defense Advocacy

MIS Veterans Hawaii

NAMI Hawaii

Natatorium.org

National Christian Foundation Hawaii

National Parents Org Hawaii

NFIB Hawaii News

No GMO Means No Aloha

Not Dead Yet, Hawaii

NRA-ILA Hawaii

Oahu Alternative Transport

Obookiah

OHA Lies

Opt Out Today

OurFutureHawaii.com

Patients Rights Council Hawaii

PEACE Hawaii

People vs Machine

Practical Policy Institute of Hawaii

Pritchett Cartoons

Pro-GMO Hawaii

P.U.E.O.

RailRipoff.com

Rental by Owner Awareness Assn

ReRoute the Rail

Research Institute for Hawaii USA

Rick Hamada Show

RJ Rummel

Robotics Organizing Committee

School Choice in Hawaii

SenatorFong.com

Sink the Jones Act

Statehood for Guam

Talking Tax

Tax Foundation of Hawaii

The Real Hanabusa

Time Out Honolulu

Trustee Akina KWO Columns

UCC Truths

US Tax Foundation Hawaii Info

VAREP Honolulu

Waagey.org

West Maui Taxpayers Association

What Natalie Thinks

Whole Life Hawaii

Yes2TMT