Obama cheers 7 mil health care sign-ups

It is indeed amazing how the Messiah and his gullible flock - especially in the media - are willing to swallow His lie about 7.1 million people newly insured. If you believe that I bet you believed that you can keep your doctor, your hospital, and your insurance policy. Obama has proven that he will lie in order to implement his arch Leftist ideology; by hook or by crook he insists on imposing His will on his unwilling subjects.

I detest what the Messiah himself refers to as Obamacare. It is yet another government intrusion that takes from me my ability to make choices for myself and my family. America of all places does not need national health care (ie. government controlled insurance). It seems that the only choice He supports is the choice of whether or not a pregnant women whose child has a heartbeat and a thinking and feeling brain can have scissors shoved into the back of it's neck after he/she is delivered into the world.

Their are essentially the same number of people insured today as there were when Obamacare was passed. About 7 million people lost their individual health plans. Ironically this is the same number of people the Messiah says signed up for his government controlled health plans. We know his number is false because although Obama will not tell us how many have actually purchased insurance, the government controlled insurance companies have already stated that 20% haven't paid. And Obama's supporters and the media don't want to keep this a secret - like they did with his pledge that you can keep your doctor. The supposedly transparent Obama administration will not say how many of the 7 million did not have insurance previously and they will not tell you that the vast majority are older and sicker making it impossible for Obamacare from becoming a huge drain on the Treasury.

All of this acrimony and polarization could have been avoided if Obama would have left the 85% of the American people who had insurance alone when concocting his scheme. Obamacare will not come close to covering the remaining 15%. He believes that the government knows what is best for his subjects despite the fact that at least half of Americans were telling him they didn't want his "help". The Left can easily make all of their Socialist dreams come true if they would simply ask those like minded American's to join them and form their own insurance company whereby each person could decide if they want to be a part of it - without government coercion and micromanagement of every single persons life. But that isn't good enough. They insist that you do what they want you to do.

Obamacare will eventually do damage to the health care of all Americans not as wealthy as people like Pelosi, Reid, Obama and the other 1% of society with the resources to avoid it.

I look forward to the next vote in Congress to roll back this assault on personal liberty and the fiscal health of the US. Keep voting until the job is done.

"the gasoline and alcohol is taxed heavily to pay for the social health care"

And Canadians aren't hit with six-digit medical bills, which can be higher than those taxes by a factor of about 10,000 and destroy the livelihood of a middle-class member. Anyway, I'm talking about medical costs (not cost burden), which are considerably lower in Canada, while the system keeps us healthier. Same in Western Europe.

"Why do you think people with money in Canada prefers to drive across the border to U.S. to get a treatment?"

A very tiny number do, for specialized treatment, and that is their choice. Everybody else doesn't.

You've obviously been spending time on the wingnut blogosphere. So I suggest you google: "Toronto doctor smacks down U.S. senators’ myths about Canadian health care"

It's astounding how Americans, including the ones who should know better. can so easily fall for pure BS.

Also, if we have no medical help for the poor, then why do so many from Third World countries come to America to seek medical help

Well to start with they don't. Impoverished people living on a dollar a day or less do not on a whim jump on a jet to NYC to have medical treatment. Those people from what you call the "3rd World Countries" are those that have been through incredible struggle to get the finance to get to the US - and that is not factoring the obstacles that lay before them to even get there. And they do not head to the US because they think they can get better treatment on their ingrowing toenails. They arrive in the US, struggle, work hard and for many years live deprived lives. But they pay their taxes and send their children to school. They become part of America. And as such they are entitled to call on the services that they fund through their taxes.

Also, Alhaapee - In the world's richest country, a country that has more than any nation has ever accumulated, why do you have 3rd world citizens? Why is anyone poor or hungry?

One of the things about modern day USA that appals me is how many people want the less well off to stay as they are. What sort of mind set is it that thinks if people cannot pay for health care then they should be sick and/or die - preferably quietly and out of the sight of the more fortunate?

Union exemptions? That's an extremely complicated issue that Republicans have dumbed down to an extreme level, even to the point of contradiction (They were bought off! Oh, wait, they hate it so it's bad!). It's the same as when a Republican asks why the government is exempt. Read about it sometime and actually see what happened.

@ SuperLib: I learned something today listening to a podcast of a radio show from KABC. The show host (who leans on the conservative side) let those who didn't know in on something. It seems that in LA and NYC, there is a private hospital system for those in the Screen Actors Guild/Motion Picuture union (SAG/AFTRA), there are private hospitals that will only see those people who are in the SAG/AFTRA union. It is a private system, and guess what, the union doesn't have to comply with ACA provisions. I guess the celeberties who were out touting the ACA themselves don't have to worry about it since they have their private hospital system and no need to worry about it.

So much for it being so great for the people yet certain groups get to get exemptions and not worry about it.

JeffLee Apr. 03, 2014 - 06:21AM JST That's not true in this case. Canada relies on government-run insurance systems, and its medical costs are nearly half of those in the US, while Canadians are healthier than Americans in terms of longevity and infant mortality.

In Canada, the gasoline and alcohol is taxed heavily to pay for the social health care. There are other taxes that are expensive. Compared to U.S., the gas price is about 25 percent more expensive. The 12 pack of beer is $24.00. Twice the cost compared to U.S.

The main difference is in wait times for medical procedures. The average Canadian can now expect to wait almost weeks for treatment with a medical specialist, Some are waiting nearly a year for an orthopedic procedure, and that never would be tolerated in the U.S. Why do you think people with money in Canada prefers to drive across the border to U.S. to get a treatment?

"That's not to mention the inefficiency inherent to any government-run service."

That's not true in this case. Canada relies on government-run insurance systems, and its medical costs are nearly half of those in the US, while Canadians are healthier than Americans in terms of longevity and infant mortality.

Lets celebrate next year when employer provided obamacare kicks in. I like my doctor want to keep him. I like the coverage I have and would like to keep it. I can afford catastrophic health incident and not stress with an enormous deductible as it is now. Next year is several thousand $$$ deductible IF something happens.

Just another slice into my standard of living which I prefer not to have.

The political bias is coming through loud and clear. The premiums seem reasonable to me. Its funny how conservatives decried Obama care based on their perception that its socialized medicine as they thought that it would be free healthcare. But now Obamacare is a ripoff because young adults will actually have to pay for their healthcare. Many middle age people pay a lot more in healthcare as a percentage of their income for many years. But I never heard one conservative complain that healthcare cost were too high. Seems to me that back then many politicians and shareholders had a lot to gain from people paying all that money from companies that provided healthcare, so of course it wasn’t so bad then. Now they actually care about the young adults that will have to pay for healthcare? How about, they are concerned that young adults paying to the system will lower the cost across the board and maybe the shares of the company that they own will not fare so well.

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Obama claims 7 million have signed up for Obamacare. I simply don't believe that, and even if its true, given the 300 million population the figure of 7 million is an epic failure, just like his presidency. The worst president in US history, presiding over a government which spies on all its citizens, and the rest of us as well. What a sad and bankrupt place the US has become under him and his Marxist cronies.

It's good that you don't believe that, because there's no such thing as "Obamacare" You won't find that term used anywhere in the laws regarding the Affordable Care Act.

Your comparison of 300 million vs. 7 million is a smokescreen because the MAJORITY of Americans didn't need to take advantage of the ACA. I'm still using my current health plan because it already met the minimum requirements of the ACA. I never had to change.

The worst president in U.S. history was arguably Andrew Jackson, who came closest to making the Presidency a monarchy when he intentionally ignored Supreme Court rulings. George W. Bush comes in a close second for multiple reasons: For starting a war against a country with no hard evidence despite the objections of our allies and resulting in the unnecessary deaths of tens of thousands of Iraqi's and Americans in search of the phantom "weapons of mass destruction" (normally, starting such a war qualifies as a Class A War Crime); for trying to insult our intelligence by claiming torture was merely "enhanced interrogation techniques"; and for creating and implementing those same NSA spying practices you seem to want to blame Obama for.

In 2009, the fierce moral urgency of 48 million uninsured Americans led us to pass the ACA. Today, the White House announced 7 million signups. The RAND Corporation says about 5.3 million had insurance before the law, and had to sign up because their plan was canceled, or they thought it would be easier. That leaves 1.7 million "signups" who were uninsured, and about 50% of those have paid their premium. That's an estimate of 858,000 people that have been helped by the ACA. The number that matters is Net New Insured. Net New Insured who have paid their premiums and continue to pay their premiums. That's what they promised. This 7 million number is insulting. And so are the Medicaid and "children" under 26. They claim millions based on eligibility, but don't count the number of actual newly insured people.

Well, one reason is malpractice insurance thanks to frivolous lawsuits.

I'm curious. Could you put a number to the impact of malpractice insurance on costs? Is it 50%, 40%, 25% or closer to 1-2%? Thanks.

Obama claims 7 million have signed up for Obamacare. I simply don't believe that, and even if its true, given the 300 million population the figure of 7 million is an epic failure, just like his presidency. The worst president in US history, presiding over a government which spies on all its citizens, and the rest of us as well. What a sad and bankrupt place the US has become under him and his Marxist cronies.

" If only doctors, hospitals, ambulances and pharmaceutical companies didn't charge outrageous sums for their services, requiring patients to either have a job that provides insurance or be rich enough to purchase insurance or be mega-rich enough to simply pay for the services outright..."

Ok. So, why are medical fees so high, then? Well, one reason is malpractice insurance thanks to frivolous lawsuits. That also discourages people from entering or staying in the medical profession. Another is the burden of complying with the Byzantine regulations and document filing requirements. Then there are the big pharma cartel lobbyists that quite effectively restrict competition. That's not to mention the inefficiency inherent to any government-run "service". I personally know several former healthcare professionals who have been effectively forced out of practice.

If only doctors, hospitals, ambulances and pharmaceutical companies didn't charge outrageous sums for their services, requiring patients to either have a job that provides insurance or be rich enough to purchase insurance or be mega-rich enough to simply pay for the services outright...

Even if you are poor here in Japan, you just can't walk into any hospital and get help.

Sure you can! I did once some 20 years ago when I'd first arrived and didn't understand the system. Went in to a large hospital in Kyoto, got checked out, was given a prescription, and left before the bill came. Still feel a bit guilty about it, as I left the taxpayer with the bill; since then, I have joined the NHS and enjoy coverage for myself, my wife, and my two children.

Fortunately, America has a system now that will make such freeloading much less common. It's nice to see that those who believe in individual responsibility have rallied behind Obamacare.

Alphaape, that's quite a lot of misinformation for one post.

Republicans have no plan. Period. They can't make one because their party is too fractured to be able to actually agree on one. That's why they've given up until after the elections (having 6+ years to do it wasn't enough). They don't want the public to see them fighting then ultimately failing once again to agree on anything. Their strategy with this issue, as well as others, is to literally hide in the dark until after the campaigns are done.

Third world countries? That's not a plan and that's not a criticism of Obama's plan. It's just talking point that you're trained to use to waste time and distract.

The GOP ideas on tort reform? That's been around for decades. And, once again, that's an idea, it's not a healthcare plan to cover more Americans. More empty phrases.

Union exemptions? That's an extremely complicated issue that Republicans have dumbed down to an extreme level, even to the point of contradiction (They were bought off! Oh, wait, they hate it so it's bad!). It's the same as when a Republican asks why the government is exempt. Read about it sometime and actually see what happened.

The poor and medicaid? Yeah, we're so covered that states like Texas decided against expanding it. Why? Well, that's obvious. If Texas can keep a million plus people uninsured then those are numbers Obama won't be able to add to his total. Politics, pure and simple. Republicans have gone beyond hating a law and moved into the territory of intentionally keeping people off of insurance.

MarkG: Seems like the facts on Obamacare are quite mysterious.

You can say that again. The Republican spin machine and their billionaire supporters have been working day and night to spread misinformation. Check out the Republican response to the State of the Union. They mentioned a sad story about a lady whose premiums were rising under Obamacare. Too bad they actually didn't check her story. When the media did, they found out that she never even went on the exchanges. This is happening over and over again with Republican "examples" of horror stories. They get debunked one after another. Either Republicans don't think fact checking is important or they just believe any horror story they hear because they just can't understand how anything could possibly work.

Go to FactCheck.org and search for Obamacare. Look at the complete lies and misinformation being spread by the right. Remember death panels? Remember 2.5 million jobs lost? The $700 million website? Here are some stories that can be found from Snopes.com: "Does a provision of Obamacare allow federal agents to conduct forced home inspections?" and "'Obamacare' health care legislation requires that everyone be implanted with microchips?" and "Does a provision of health care legislation impose a 3.8% sales tax on all home sales?"

All lies being spread by people who have an irrational hatred of a law based on information they don't understand or don't care to understand. And in the meantime, no plan from Republicans at all.

Get sick, poor, die.

Not true. The poor have health care in America. Even if you are poor here in Japan, you just can't walk into any hospital and get help. You can in America as well as the Medicaid programs for the poor and other social programs. The problem with America is that these programs are not run very well and there needed to be some change, but not this heavy handed approach.

Also, if we have no medical help for the poor, then why do so many from Third World countries come to America to seek medical help?

The GOP has put for some ideas, one would be to limit tort reform so people can't sue for millions for medicla malpractice. But that is not getting any traction. Also, if it is so great, then why do so many unions have exemptions?

I always find it astounding that a country that purports to be the "richest" in the world does not have a public health system. Get sick, poor, die.

And how many cancelled health plans resulted from obamacare? Somewhat north of 7M I recall.

The Republicans like to trot this statistic out whenever they want to bash the ACA, all the while knowing that out of 7 million cancellations, at least 80% of the affected people were automatically enrolled into the replacement ACA-compliant plans their place of employment went with.

The Republicans are doing the equivalent of raising the alarm about millions of driver's licenses being expired by the state every year, while conveniently glossing over the fact that almost all of those whose license expired received renewals.

Seems like the facts on Obamacare are quite mysterious. Lets wait and see how many "paying" customers. And at what cost to launch and promote this VERY publicized (free) ACA? in the billions likely.

As for the republican jab from an above post. Why is it sweet democrat deals were made to some unions to be obamacare exempt to the inner circles of the party? Seems fishy to me. Why 50+ times, We had to pass it to see whats in it!

And how many cancelled health plans resulted from obamacare? Somewhat north of 7M I recall.

Republicans however vowed to carry on opposing a law they say has put undue pressure on small businesses, costs jobs and hiked costs for health care consumers.

Well, Republicans could always put forth their own healthcare legislation. Heheh.....just kidding. They can't even agree with each other and creating more political dirty laundry for all of America to see isn't something they will even attempt to do. They've decided to table it until after the elections. Just like immigration reform. And the budget. Best to just sit on the sidelines and vote against Obamacare 50+ times to distract people from the fact that they have no plans nor leaders.