Here is advice to Democrats. Read your Machiavelli. He said people would fight much harder to retain a benefit they already had than people would fight to obtain a potential benefit in the future.
You could see this play out with the Affordable Care Act. Eight years ago we saw the rise of the Tea Party movement, largely over a bill that would benefit millions of people. The benefits, however, were in the future, and millions more were worried about losing their health care or having to pay more for premiums.
Now a large majority of people would like to maintain the Affordable Care Act. They benefit and know it. They made their support vocal at Congressional town meetings all across the country.
But Bernie Sanders is pushing the Single Payer Plan. About 140 million people get their health coverage through their employer. I’m one of them. My Medicare is supplemented by California Blue Cross through my former employer.
Yes, I know that the concept of the Single Payer plan is supposed to be wonderful, and in Finland people get great medical care, but do you really expect me and 140 million fellow citizens, including millions who are quite satisfied with their insurance under the Affordable Care Act, to take a leap of faith into the unknown?
This will be another disaster for the Democratic Party and its rather few remaining legislators. It’s ideological thinking versus practical thinking. Please, read some Machiavelli.
I must disagree with this. If Medicare was offered for anyone 60 and over today, I'd sign up (I'm 63 and using the ACA). Then in a couple of years they could lower the age to 50, then 40, etc. until everyone was signed on.
ReplyDeleteAn alternative would be to offer a public option such as Medicare for anyone who cared to use it. They could use the system already in place but expand it.
The ACA was a good start, but the markets have become so unstable by all these attempts to repeal it, costs have skyrocketed. Bi-partisan attempts to stabilize the market are in the works, but even if they pass, it will come too late for the next cycle. I expect my premiums to go up quite a bit in November. Because the insurance companies are for-profit and can't stand the idea of losing money for their investors and CEOs, we the actual buyers must pay the price.