Obamacare Health Insurance Exchanges Crash and Burn. Tweaks and Glitches

A few days ago, lawmakers sealed a deal to reopen the government and to relax the debt limit.  This was no O’Henry story with a surprise ending.  This was the outcome that all of us knew was forthcoming.  The GOP not only had no cards to play, but their empty hand was known to all.  It’s very hard to bluff when your cards are face up and you don’t even have a pair of deuces.   Obamacare was the GOP target that quickly became a phantom.  It disappeared.  Afterwards, there was nothing for them to shoot at except each other.

GOP vs Dems

A perusal of my posts nestled in the Health Care Reform Quality category will demonstrate my skepticism and hostility against Obamacare, which is an interim step toward something even worse.   But, the law was legally enacted, approved by voters in the last general election and was upheld by the U.S. Supreme Court. 

That such a monumental program was passed in a unipartisan manner is wrong, but is not illegal.  The roll out of the exchanges has been so abysmal that even Robert Gibbs, former Obama spokesman, has sounded more like a Tea Partier when commenting on the failed implementation. 

Even the Huffington Post, hardly a Tea Party outlet, trashes the exchange roll out. 

While Obamians may try to gloss over this colossal failure, amply documented in the media, by using words like ‘tweaks’ and ‘glitches’, the rest of us are not so easily hypnotized.   They are desperate to lure young healthy folk into the exchanges to pay for older Americans with health issues.  Those young indestructible Americans in their 20s, will pay a premium, particularly as they must pay for mandated insurance benefits that they may not want or need.   The penalty next year for those who opt out of the exchanges is $95, which young folks may choose over coverage.

And, if young folks do sign up, they will likely choose the low premium and high deductible option.  So, they will face high out of pocket costs for medical care and would be covered only for a catastrophic event that is unlikely to happen.  Will young people in these exchange plans become Obama cheerleaders?   I doubt it. 

Remember the president promising that if we wanted to keep our own doctor that we could?  Each week we read about another large company that is getting out of the medical insurance business and pushing folks onto the gleaming exchanges.    Once planted there, will they have free choice?  If their deductible is now $5,000, might this curtail their freedom to choose?  What if their doctor isn't on the plan?  The web site makes it nearly impossible for folks to determine if their doctor is on the plan.  This adds some adventure to the process.  And, it might be fun to meet a new doctor.  Another glitch?

The failed roll out is not an aberrational event.  It’s a symptom of system that is clumsy, controlling, expansive and broken. 

Let's stop the spinning.  When something is a disaster, then call it by its true name.   We’ve just seen how the legislative branch has served the nation over the past few weeks.  Would you call this a glitch?  Does Congress just need a tweak or two?   Let’s describe them in terms that pass the honesty test.  They are a group of self-promoting, petty and conniving partisans who spurn the public trust as they pursue their own personal ambitions while demonizing the opposition. 

Since the new agreement funds the government through January 15^th and extends the debt limit through February 7^th, we’ll be spectating once again the Congressional Theater of the Absurd in a few short months.

Last week, Congress’s approval rating has dropped to 5%.   My question to my learned readers is who are these 5%?