Paul Ryan and Donald Trump continue to lie to Americans about how good their health care "plan" for all citizens. That would be laughable if it did not hurt so many people.
Before the Affordable Care Act (Obamacare) went into effect, nearly 20% of all Americans did not have any kind of health insurance (most because they could not afford to pay the high private insurance premiums, and could not meet the strict qualifications for a government program like Medicaid). Obamacare reduced that percentage to about 10%, and could have reduced it even further of multiple GOP-controlled states had not refused to expand Medicaid.
Obamacare was not perfect, because it didn't cover all Americans (and did not lower the high costs of medical care). But it could have been fixed.
But instead of fixing Obamacare, the Republicans have chosen to destroy it, and replace it with their own (extremely inadequate) plan. How inadequate? The chart above shows that clearly. If their plan is enacted, the percentage of uninsured people in this country will rise back to pre-Obamacare levels (close to 20% of the population).
The Republicans say their plan will give all Americans "access" to health insurance. That is a LIE! Millions of Americans will be unable to afford to purchase private insurance, and will not be able to qualify for Medicaid (which is being cut). If you cannot afford insurance, then it is disingenuous to claim that you have access to insurance. The truth is that nearly 20% of the population will have neither coverage nor access.
And then we have the situation illustrated in the chart below. The United States continues to spend far more (per capita) for health care than any other developed nation. Obamacare did not solve that problem, and neither does the proposed Republican plan. Not only will the GOP plan throw millions off the health insurance rolls, but it will also insure that the U.S. continues to pay a higher price for health care than any other developed nation. It's crazy that Congress is even considering this boondoggle.
There is a better way -- single-payer insurance (Medicare for all). It would not only cover all citizens, but would lower the amount spent on health care in this country. Isn't it time we considered this?
