A philosophy of the Trump Administration was laid bare last week when in the midst of a global pandemic it took action to strip the health insurance of 23 million Americans.
On Thursday, the administration petitioned the U.S. Supreme Court to overturn the Affordable Care Act, signing on with 18 Republican state attorneys general.
To Kansas’s shame, Attorney General Derek Schmidt has been part of the team to disband the healthcare program.
With 10 years under its belt, the Affordable Care Act is more popular than ever and for many their only option for health insurance.
To Mr. Trump and crew that seems not to matter.
What does?
They won’t say.
WE’LL TAKE a stab.
For 10 years, Republicans have been unhappy with the premise of a healthcare program that guarantees coverage no matter one’s situation because it goes against the big-business mantra of making as much money as possible. Decade after decade, the Aetnas and Anthems of the world have raked in untold billions by being able to limit health insurance to primarily the healthy and wealthy.
Before the ACA, one out of every six Americans were uninsured, either because it was too expensive or because health insurance companies wouldn’t take them. Today, that number has been cut by more than half.
Before the ACA, the estimated 50 million Americans with pre-existing conditions such as high blood pressure, cancer, diabetes, cardiovascular or liver disease, etc., were either denied health insurance or charged excessive rates.
Before the ACA, insurance was primarily available only through one’s employer, tying down many to jobs simply because of insurance. And even though it may have been available, many employer-provided plans set strict limits as to what they would cover and for how much. Today, such caps are illegal.
Before the ACA, children were booted off their parents’ plans at age 19 or 23, if they were a full-time college student. Today, they can remain on until age 26.
Before the ACA, the indigent had no avenue to health insurance. Today, the poor in most states have access to Medicaid. For the 14 states that have not expanded Medicaid — including Kansas — the poor continue to suffer.
Before the ACA, women were not only charged more for health insurance but it also failed to cover procedures such as mammograms and pap smears, birth control or annual checkups.
