Wednesday, October 18, 2017

Graves: I was happy Trump signed order eliminating Obamacare subsidies for low income people

(From Sixth District Congressman Sam Graves)

Obamacare is broken.

It wasn’t long after the law was passed that we began hearing those very words.

And it’s true. Many Missourians lost the insurance plans that they were promised they could keep, premium prices doubled, and doctors are harder to find. Barack Obama promised his namesake law would boost the economy, but across the country, millions of Americans as well as small businesses reported ObamaCare harmed their ability to afford access to care for their families and employees.

More than 1500 counties, including most in North Missouri, will only have one health insurance option in 2018 and that option will likely cost more than it did this year. As predicted, when the law was passed paying the penalty for not having insurance is cheaper than actually having it. Most of those households choosing to pay the penalty make less than $50,000. They have to choose between daily essentials or paying high premiums and high-deductibles for insurance they can’t even use. You and I both know that health insurance coverage is meaningless if you cannot afford to use it or have access to quality care.

That’s why I am happy to see President Trump sign an Executive Order last week which starts the process of dismantling the burdensome regulations imposed on everyday Americans and small business owners by Obamacare. This takes the first step in providing millions of Americans with Obamacare relief they desperately need.

The President’s action will help make more health insurance options available to North Missourians. Anyone who is in between jobs or only serviced by one insurer could potentially get more access to short-term insurance.

Small businesses would also get the opportunity to join with other small businesses, even those across state lines, to provide more affordable health insurance to their employees. Selling health insurance across state lines is something I have pushed for from the start and I’m glad to see that the idea is moving forward. Our small businesses are the backbone of this country. They should be able to provide health insurance to their employees at an affordable cost. This executive order gives them the opportunity to do that. I believe that more competition in the marketplace means affordable.

These welcomed changes are a positive step in the right direction, but there is still more work to be done. I look forward to working with my fellow colleagues in the House to continue our push to keep our seven-year promise to repeal and replace Obamacare. Failure is not an option.

9 comments:

Anonymous said...

I remember hearing the words "Missouri law makers decline to expand medicare" I also recall hearing "repeal Obamacare" and not hearing of a plan to replace. I still don't hear the Repubs plan. Just more bluster.

Anonymous said...

>>>I still don't hear the Repubs plan.<<<

DEATH PANELS!!!

Anonymous said...

My main question is without a real national health care plan in place at moment or in the future, leaving it to each state, what happens if traveling and you get hurt or have something happening does the place take your insurance or expect to get paid and you file paperwork when you get home? Seems like national plan is only way to go, but then republicans do not want you having no lifetime limits, taking care of pre-existing conditions, or in general have wellness exams or other preventative measures. Blunt hopes you smoke more cigarettes as his kids lobby for tobacco companies and we need to add a special exception for Billy Bob that he pays extra for his healthcare for every pound he is overweight or for each drink and steak he consumes. Base his cost on neck measurement.

Anonymous said...

Republicans are so short sighted. It is their own base they are going to be killing off.

Anonymous said...

President Trump did no such thing. The subsidies were unauthorized payments to Large insurance companies that were making record profits. They were never appropriated by Congress and were ruled unconstitutional by the Federal Courts. The President has never stopped any subsidy to a poor person authorized under the affordable care act.

Anonymous said...

National policies by Repubs? Guns only, please. States rights for everything else. Except abortions, as well as guns.

Anonymous said...

Absolutely ridiculous!! Our healthcare system is fully broken, has been broken since long before Obama hit office and will continue to BE broken until everyone demands single payer - national healthcare. Sans insurance providers. Let the insurance companies duke it out for the wealthy scraps/dollars so they can help them pay for their plastics etc. My husband and I are both self-employed - we have 2 children, our insurance for the most BASIC PPO that Blue Shield offers (Bronze level) costs us almost $1200 per month with us each having a 6k deductible for the year and a $40 per visit co-pay. Then they charged me an additional $700 for a diagnostic screen (on top of their basic payment of $123 dollars to the labs) of a lump in my breast!!! And then I had a visit to the er. That cost us an additional 7k - so woooo we met our deductible if there is a catastrophe between now and the end of the calendar year - they MIGHT cover some of it. Oh and that ER visit was while traveling (which we do regularly) and 'out of network' because one should always check the network in an emergent situation, so it cost more. And no, they do not cover the ambulance ride - because they were able to attend to the injury and release me. Only admission to hospital is paid for... About 22k for an er visit and a boob smash! That's a hell of a lot of money and all because we would be penalized such an enormous amount it is actually a bit LESS. I HATE it. Before Obamacare we had a health savings account and would request cash pricing for any illness or office visits - that cost us about $2k per calendar year (including my girly things) We had saved enough to cover a catastrophe (but carried catastrophic health, for 'just in case', running us about $1200 per year pre Obamacare. While I am tickled to do my part for the country and work my tail off to help cover some of those less fortunate than I - if we move to a single payer system - similar to National Health coverage of OTHER first world countries we would all suffer markedly less. But if you think Big Pharma and all the other healthcare lobbyist will let that happen, I've a bridge in Brooklyn on the market for cheap, if there is interest. -

Harvey Hutchinson said...

One thing for certain; Obamacare was rammed down our throats ( perhaps the other anatomical end); and it has been the supreme disaster in all of recorded history!! I shutter to think if lying crooked Hillary had got in there to continue the catastrophe!

Harvey HUTCHINSON 303-522-6622 voice&text

Anonymous said...

Graves, not only are you a fool but your ignorant rhetoric is cut and paste. Do you not know how to read and make a decision for yourself? Show the actual facts and not your lying alternative BS. SHOW FACTS! Tell us what your plan is and how you are going to replace it. Tell us how you are going to cover the millions that now have insurance. Tell us how you are going to make the un-insured pay their medial bills if they decide to opt out of insurance coverage. Who is going to pay for their bills when they have an accident or major medical event? You republican hacks want to act like you actually care for these people and some of the uneducated rednecks that voted for the moron in the "White Trash House" believe you. Who is going to pay for their medical bills when your "No plan" takes away the subsidies that help them pay for their coverage? Go ahead. Maybe thinning out the uneducated redneck republican base is what we need. You fools and morons keep preaching about the ills of Obama care but you aren't listening to the people that are telling you to FIX IT!