Universal Healthcare.

Peter

When you try to find space between the  bad and the best, you end up with "Obamacare".

Between the old way of healthcare in US and universal healthcare we have Obamacare.All the developed countries have solved this issue long time ago except the US.Is it because we are the greediest nation in the world?

The best way is universal healthcare and everybody pay a tax based on your income, your state of health, how you participate to decrease your risk of preventable diseases and other considerations.

 How come those smart people did not see how problematic Obamacare was?

Young people don't care about healthcare, they hardly get sick.

The democrats are too scared to fight for universal healthcare and the republican too greedy to loose  election money from the healthcare industry.

This will go on for a decade at least.

Elected officials cannot solve this.What a shame!

ellimcp

I agree with you in many ways.  One payer is the ultimate answer, in my opinion.  Vermont is on track to go one payer as of 2017 at this point, and yet there is no discussion of this in the national media.  You have to wonder why.....

MsWise

This new law is the most substantial regulatory overhaul to our nation's health care system since the implementation of Medicare/Medicaid almost 50 years ago, and some people are still grumbling about parts of those programs today! I wasn't around yet when those laws 1st came to be, but I bet you those programs look a lot different today than when they were 1st enacted. Time allows you to see what works and doesn't work. The kinks get knocked out, the benefits get fine-tuned and things run more smoothly. The problem with the ACA/Obamacare is that a lot of the fundamental provisions to the law were tossed out--in the name of 'politickin'--before the law was even signed. Compromise can be a curse; but it's the way things get done (or was) in Washington. And we ALL know the ANTI-Ganesh-icans have been giving themselves high-blood pressure, diabetes, eating disorders (you name it!), etc. trying to get this law KILLED before it can actually work for 99% of America. Good thing most of them can afford insurance, huh?

TE5LA

This is the biggest load of horse crap I have ever encountered. First, I am required by law to buy into this or pay a heavy fine. So being a "good" citizen, I applied for this "insurance" which does me absolutely no good and after sending in a voided check and the paperwork for automatic payment drafts, guess what? They send me a letter saying they can't accept automatic drafts because I "have an open account balance". How in the world can I have a balance on insurance that I don't have? With insurance, you are not insured until you've paid, so if I'm not insured, I don't have an "open balance". Hey, guess what? The automatic draft was my PAYMENT method. Duh!

So the way this system really "works" is, they have millions of people being forced to give them money for no product in return and that pays the bills for those who can afford a decent plan. How do you, Mr. Obama, consider this affordable health care for all?  My "plan" had a $6300 deductible, which I'd never be able to pay so I'd never use this. If I could pay a $6300 deductible, I'd be able to afford better insurance.

Well, I suppose if I were to move out of my residence and live in the street, I could save rent and pay the deductible.

sbatz1972

I think it is a total shame. I think that we as Americans have become such an ill nation that we most certainly do need some sort of health care reform laws. However, I do not think Obamacare was the answer.
I think that Obamacare has given more of an issue with the doctors telling people they cannot perform this test or that test. I am ill and the doctors will not perform any of the necessary tests. I feel like I am getting the run around because of this Obamacare and that Obamacare gives them permission to do so.
I think there is a bigger issue in that I have employer insurance, I do not have Obamacare. I work for Amazon which is not a small company. I do not think my insurance is tied to Obamacare at all.

LilAnn

I believe is a combination of greed and ... I can't think of anything else. So I guess its just greed.

harpazo22

Yes it'll be universal healthcare, universal government, universal currency, universal religion. And yes it's all about greed. The people in power love to get more rich while the people who struggle continue to struggle. That's the way the world is set up and it's sad and frustrating.

Jansom

There seems to be no "insurance" left in the health insurance marketplace. That is, health insurance has moved away from being a way to protect your assets in case of a serious health problem. It's now seen a substitute payment method for cash or cash equivlents. This has led to the increase in pricing and the move towards universal health care. Universal healthcare will end up happening unless we can move back to a cash system of paying for healthcare, with insurance only used for covering treatment related to high cost conditions and injuries.

nailah783

When I first heard of obamacare, this is what I thought it was. I've been saying that we should have universal healthcare like all the other countries. Hell, in some countries they even pay for plastic surgery and elective surgery. They pay for a babysitter to come to your house, so that you and your spouse can have a date night, so that you can relive stress, which helps with your health. It's amazing how much other countries do for their citizens, but we're supposed to be the best country in the world.

chilliman

The US healthcare system as a whole needed a change. The question is "Was Obamacare the way to do it?" Does it really have to be either or? Can't we just tweak and change the parts that aren't working right?

Maelalove

I agree a lot of it has to do with greed. We don't want to take away from our own profit to help everyone as a whole. The less bankruptcy there is from healthcare related costs for others, the more goes into our economy, and improves it. It's a system. 

fairy92

I think the ACA is a compromise between all of viewpoints because I personally don't think we can ever reach a point of universal healthcare. That concept honestly seems so out of reach at this point considering the partisan politics. I would love something like what the other developed nations have, however considering the opposition to the ACA, I don't think we would come to an agreement to something as governmentally regulative as universal healthcare. 

lisasian86

I'm from England and I work for the NHS so I find this topic really interesting, over here our healthcare is ''free at the point of use'' so everyone pays taxes out of their wage and these taxes pay for the NHS. We don't have a bill for seeing a doctor, if you need surgery it is free and absolutely no one is excluded. I really don't understand why you don't have a system like this in America. It's not without it's problems, as staff we are extremely over worked and our current government are trying to squeeze even more funds out of us so it's not plain sailing, but I honestly can't believe that in America a person could be turned away from receiving healthcare because they can't afford it, it's astounding.

judyd

You are absolutely correct! When President Obama first proposed changes to the Healthcare system, he wanted exactly what Canada, Great Britain, and France have--free health care for every citizen. That would be real progress. 

But Congress fought it--it would mean billions of dollars lost for insurance companies alone. As long as it's all about profit, America might never have decent health care.

There is something fundamentally wrong when you leave health care interest in the hands of insurance companies, deny the right to have alternative health choices covered, and turn people away who need health services the most. 

And the motto is still: "In God We Trust".  (I want to add: all others must have insurance or pay cash)

rz3300

I am not an expert on health care policy or anything remotely close to it, but I have always heard and also assumed that a universal health care system is simpler and cheaper.  I am certain that it is a very complex issue with far-reaching implications, but there has to be something with the American political system or culture that is standing in the way of examining it as a policy, because like @judyd stated, everyone else seemed to figure it out.

lisasian86

I completely agree, it is so troubling to know that such a large population have their healthcare dictated by profit making companies, although the current British government are trying to sell off parts of our NHS to private companies for profit themselves which I think is terrible. Decent healthcare is a right of every citizen regardless of their income and I just find it so repulsive that the high ups in the insurance companies are lining their pockets by abusing the basic needs of human beings.