President Trump Wasted No Time in Tackling the Repeal and Replacement of Obamacare, Says AMAC

WASHINGTON, Jan. 27 -- The Association of Mature American Citizens issued the following news release:

"True to his word, President Trump did not waste any time tackling the task of repealing and replacing Obamacare. Soon after he was inaugurated last Friday he signed an executive order that could dismantle the Affordable Care Act in one fell swoop," according to Dan Weber, president of the Association of Mature American Citizens.

The executive order gives agencies of the federal government sweeping powers to undo elements of the ACA that might cause hardships on users - including the individual mandate, an Obamacare cornerstone. Without the mandate, the law will more than likely collapse under its own weight.

"Mr. Trump's action caused widespread criticism on the left. But at least one liberal media outlet, CNBC, praised the move in an opinion article headlined, 'Trump gets rid of the stupidest part of Obamacare'," says Weber.

The article, by Jake Novak, CNBC.com senior columnist, notes that "the core problem with the mandate was that it was a classic case of 'demand side' economics. Obamacare architects and advocates believed they could create adequate demand for health insurance, but even with subsidies, an eventually functional website, and legal penalties, it still couldn't create enough demand. They literally made it illegal not to buy health insurance, and that still didn't create a big enough market for the product."

That particular provision of the law was supposed to make Obamacare work. It, in effect, required young and healthy individuals to pay high premiums and deductibles as a way to help pay for the insurance of those who are not so healthy. They'd either be paying those high premiums or risk tax penalties to ensure there was enough money on hand to subsidize individuals who were not as young and healthy. It turned out that it was cheaper and easier to pay the tax penalties than to buy into Obamacare.

"The left, in an effort to protect President Obama's so-called legacy, continues to poke the GOP for thinking Republican resolve to replace the ACA is undoable. Is it possible they are hoping that President Trump will fall on his face in dealing with the issue of healthcare insurance? But, as Novak points out in his article, even the individual mandate is replaceable by simply relying on something Mr. Trump is good at--the use of supply side economics," Weber points out.

He quotes from Novak's article: "The Trump White House has certainly made no secret that it's eager to put direct pressure and offer incentives to many different kinds of businesses. That includes health care businesses with President Trump's repeated promises to do something about high drug prices... Move from drug companies to the insurers, hospitals, clinics, and even private practice doctors. They too face unique regulations and taxes that inflate prices. Whatever deal the drug companies get, the insurers will likely demand as well. None of these businesses and business people operates without costs that can't be significantly reduced by the government."

Weber says he is confident that the new administration will deal "effectively" with the health insurance needs of the country. "Look how fast he moved to begin tackling the principle problems with Obamacare. Look at the man he picked to head up the Health and Human Services Department, Dr. Tom Price, an outstanding and innovative expert on how to address the Nation's health care crisis caused by Obamacare. He has been a real leader in the Congress on both projecting the disastrous impacts of Obamacare and fashioning positive and constructive solutions for improved access to health care for all Americans, including seniors. One thing is sure: this administration is determined to get government out of the healthcare business."

[Category: Sociological]

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