A celebration Republicans might regret
Ignoring the polls and the cries of hundreds of constituents, House Republicans – and only Republicans – voted to kill Obamacare on Thurdsay.
The cheering, back-slapping and partying soon moved from the Capitol to the White House. All that celebrating made an indelible impression on millions of voters. There was something disconcerting about so many men celebrating something that is making millions of people fearful. As they celebrated, crowds gathered outside the Capitol shouting “Shame! Shame! Shame!”
Republicans were euphoric over passing the American Health Care Act to replace the Affordable Care Act. Under the Republicans’ version, people with pre-existing conditions – from pregnancy to diabetes to heart disease – are destined to pay more and get less. Programs for children, clinics for veterans, services for older Americans will be squeezed – some out of existence. Retirees could pay triple their current costs.
But insurance companies are likely to be doing much better. One estimate puts their windfall at $100 million a year.
Every single California Republican – including House Majority Leader Kevin McCarthy or Bakersfield, David Valadao of Hanford and Jeff Denham of Turlock – embraced this mess.
Why? The AHCA is a $300 billion tax cut for the very rich, and it’s the very rich who contribute the most to political campaigns. Those who are sick and vulnerable have less to give.
If the House plan becomes law, states will be allowed to opt out of crucial consumers protections. Workplace insurance won’t have to cap your out-of-pocket expenses. Medicaid’s expansion will be rolled back, causing millions to suddenly become uninsured. Medicaid itself will be cut by $880 billion over the next decade. That will drive ever more people into hospital emergency rooms for treatment they can’t pay for, sending the cost of treatment higher for those who can.
In California, where Medi-Cal covers a third of the population, the loss of federal funds will punch a $6 billion hole in the budget and punish millions.
Pricey mandated coverage that, before Obamacare, insurers seldom offered – for mental health care, substance-abuse treatment, maternity care – would be up to the states; as premiums soar, most will drop it. An analysis of a less Draconian version of this bill by the Congressional Budget Office showed that 24 million people will lose their insurance. The meaner version passed Thursday will cause even more to suffer.
Some moderates voted aye to avoid a primary challenge from the right, hoping the plan’s worst aspects will be cleaned up in the Senate. Or be forgotten in 18 months. We doubt their lack of courage will that soon fade from memory. That’s especially true for Denham and Valadao, who tried to hide behind a promise of an additional $8 billion over five year to subsidize high-risk pools. One study puts the annual shortfall for such pools at nearly $200 billion.
It’s going to be hard for voters to forget a smiling Donald Trump celebrating like a fat-cat sports team owner. Or McCarthy extolling this plan is even as half his own district is on Medi-Cal. Did any of them recall the hundreds of constituents who packed town halls meetings to plead that their insurance not be gutted? Probably not.
We’re guessing voters will help them remember soon enough.
This story was originally published May 4, 2017 at 7:25 PM with the headline "A celebration Republicans might regret."