EDITORIAL: Health-care coverage and Rep. Rogers, a bad mix

March 29--If the health-care bill Rep. Mike Rogers, R-Saks, was prepared to vote for last week had become law, an estimated 16,000 people living in his congressional district would have lost health insurance. By 2026, according to a Congressional Budget Office analysis, 24 million Americans would lose their health insurance if the bill -- American Health Care Act (AHCA) -- had passed.

Those dire predictions played a large role in the Republicans leadership in the U.S. House cancelling a vote on the AHCA last Friday. Of course, opinion polls showed less than 20 percent of Americans favored the proposed replacement for the Affordable Care Act (aka Obamacare), and that, too, surely played a part in last week's wheels-off attempt at legislating.

Nevertheless, Rogers, via a press release, said, "This vote was very simple to understand -- Obamacare does not work, and it will never get better. The choice was clear -- support President Trump and this bill to repeal and replace the disastrous law or support keeping Obamacare."

In other words, Obamacare, which has offered millions coverage, is bad. Its replacement, the AHCA, is good despite the fact that 16,000 of Rogers' constituents and millions of Americans would lose coverage.

There is so much wrong with this picture.

We can start with Obamacare's failings. It is in need of upgrades. The Congress could work to encourage states that have been mostly reluctant to expand Medicaid, a provision of the Affordable Care Act, to get with the program.

Uninsured young people who are healthy should be given more incentives to sign up for coverage.

Speaking of incentives, much more can be done so that the U.S. health system encourages healthy habits that keep expensive medical treatments at bay. Rogers should know first-hand how Alabama's poor health habits lead to costly care for those with diabetes, heart disease and other lifestyle-related ailments.

Why not expand Medicare to allow Americans between the ages of 50 and 65 to buy into the program?

The point should be for Rogers and his colleagues to enhance what exists, and not merely to tear down and, ultimately, take away health insurance.

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