Letter to the Editor: Supreme Court Correct in Upholding Affordable Health Care

This is a historic moment at many levels.

Firstly, the first substantive step towards making healthcare available and affordable for ALL Americans, something EVERY president since FDR has tried and failed to accomplished has been upheld and will continue.

Despite all the lies, distortions and half-truths Romney spewed out today, the bill will lower healthcare costs, provide coverage to ALL Americans either through the Medicaid expansion or subsidies through an exchange.  The plan requires only about 6% of Americans to be taxed for not having healthcare and being able to afford it and the rate is $650 or 2% of their income whichever is less. With that small cost they have medical coverage.

This bill REDUCES the debt, prevents people from being dropped or denied coverage for preexisting conditions, allows children to stay on family plans until age 26, requires free preventive services for everyone, reduces prescription costs under Medicare by about $600/year per senior, eliminates annual and lifetime caps, prevents insurers from denying coverage for people born with birth defects and it requires insurers to spend 80% of their premiums on actually providing services rather than administrative costs or profits and bonuses.  It also eliminates discriminating against women by forcing them to pay higher premiums because they made the mistake of being born women. Many Americans will get a refund this August from insurers who jacked up their premiums this year – blaming the healthcare bill – trying to gin-up profits on the hopes the bill would be struck down.

It is a win-win-win for everyone and those who oppose it do so because they are either entrenched in maintaining the failed and cruel status-quo or don’t actually understand the bill, what it does and how it does it based on lies, distortions and exaggeration they have been fed over the past 2 years.

Americans win because in 2 years everyone will have medical insurance.  Doctors win because reimbursement rates under Medicaid go up.  Hospitals win because now they will get paid when uninsured Americans walk in because uninsured will almost completely disappear.  Those with employer provided plans will have costs go down as the uninsured join the ranks of the insured and begin to get routine preventative healthcare, go to doctors instead of the ER when sick, and by getting earlier treatment can have illnesses treated earlier at lower costs. Insurers win because millions of Americans will now be added to their ranks. Everyone wins with lower costs. Everyone wins with a reduction in the deficit. Everyone wins with more jobs created by the plan and the additional people in the system. Employers who currently have uninsured employees win because employees will be healthier, miss less work, and be able to get early treatment for children reducing personal days to care for sick children.

It CREATES 4 million new jobs, and cuts the debt by $1 trillion over time.

This is also a win for the Constitution.  There is no way to construe the law as not being allowed under the Constitution, which anyone I spoke to over the past months has heard me say.  Every American is in the healthcare system whether they have insurance or not.  If they have it, well that is obvious, but if they don’t, they will be in it at some point and if they can’t pay, their costs are forced onto those with coverage or absorbed by hospitals who pass those costs on to insured patients.

Those who say no one should have a free ride and oppose this law and the mandate are confused – The tax as it has been redefined allows everyone  to contribute to the system because they are in it whether or not they use it today.

Chief Justice Roberts, compelled by the weight of the Constitution and history properly decided this case with the 4 more liberal justices. 

Already today, millions of American’s have been helped by this law.  My son has medical coverage which he could never afford, I have had a colonoscopy recently without paying $1000-2000 out of pocket, - doing so may prevents future treatments for more costly colon cancer - my father’s prescription costs are lower – and my daughter will never have to fear changing jobs and loosing insurance when she gets older as a result.

The next generation will not know an America where people can’t afford to see a doctor or receive life-saving medical care because they don’t have insurance and can’t afford the care.

I DARE Nan Hayworth, who came out today saying $500B is cut from Medicare (untrue) and the plan is job-killing (the “Whopper of 2011” lie-of-the-year on factcheck.org) to offer a better plan.

Bruce Yablon
Chairman, Bedford Democratic Committee