More evidence of the … what, ignorance, stupidity willingness to mislead- all of the above and worse of our leader.

Hypocrite comes to mind as well.

Take a look and think about what you see.

What is the point of this post other than to create a false impression, to attack Obamacare in an irrelevant way?

The Affordable Care Act:

✔️ Greatly expanded the availability of insurance

✔️ First required, then induced people to buy health insurance

✔️ Naturally expanded the customer base of insurers, added revenue and aggregate profits which were reflected in stock prices.

In other words, exactly what you would expect in any industry with an expanding customer base.

Exactly what Donald Trump tries to do with hotels, casinos and golf courses.

What he fails to mention is that profits and premiums are regulated and limited for insurance company offering health insurance and that more customers should increase revenue.

Trump is intentionally trying to turn a positive for Americans into a negative for uniformed people.

This from a man who not only opposes a Medicare for All approach, but has failed to deliver on his promise for a great new health plan to replace Obamacare.

Perhaps he is still looking for a plan that does not involve insurance companies.

3 comments

  1. Al Lindquist:

    good information from both of you–it is a very complicated subject–your back and forth is lively and enlightening–

    let’s pray that Connie does well as she works toward a full recovery.

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  2. Facts are stubborn things.

    What’s misleading here is that, as you have pointed out over and over and over again, that insurance company profits and health insurance company CEO compensation are up and up and up … criticism that typically comes from the left who favor Medicare 4All or single payer (all in one pool) … where you confirm that insurance company profits and CEO compensation are not the #1 reason for the dramatic increase in the cost of coverage.

    So, when Trump takes notice and repeats the insurance company profit/CEO compensation refrain that his most viral opponents spew, why highlight Trump’s criticism of Health “Reform”, and fail to mention that the idiot Trump is only parrotting the liberal and progressive Bernie/AOC wing of the Democratic party?

    Clearly, health insurers got on board with the Democrat’s Health “Reform” proposal once it became clear that it wasn’t “Reform”, but an embrace of the status quo, loaded with taxpayer subsidies to reduce the number of uninsured, at any cost. They saw that most of the uninsured were individuals who believed they were healthy enough to forego health coverage, looked like profitable risks – and noticed that the costs to pump up their profits would be passed to future taxpayers, those too young to vote and generations unborn, as Health “Reform” “kicked the can” down the road by running $1 – $2 Trillion a year in annual deficits (dramatic increases in Medicaid enrollment, going from 0 to 24 Million in taxpayer subsidized enrollment in exchange coverage, etc.)

    What would be interesting, given your claim that these insurance company financial performance facts are misleading, that their changes in financial condition are not the direct result of Health “Reform”, would be for you to identify why the increased revenues, increased profits, increased stock prices, increased industry consolidation, and increased health insurer CEO compensation are NOT one of the outcomes from Health “Reform”.

    I say, go for it, prove your point. Go back to the 15 years prior to Health “Reform”, sample the top 7 private (for profit) health insurers, and show their financial performance from 1995 to 2009. Back in the mid-90’s, the marketplace for health coverage was very different: Kaiser estimates that 27% of Americans with employer-sponsored coverage were still in base/major medical or what they once called “conventional” insurance, 7% were in POS options, 38% were in PPO’s and 29% were in HMOs.

    I can guarantee you that the data would confirm a dramatically different story – four of the seven on the idiot Trump’s list would not be on your list as of 1/1/95 – UHG, Centene, Molina, and Humana.

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    1. Thats easy. Just make the distinction between price and volume.

      Clearly, anything that encourages the purchase of a product increases sales and revenue. Hence, insurers have more customers.

      You can make more with volume than higher prices on less volume. Nothing wrong with that.

      The point is that higher premiums per policy are not the result of ACA or profit or CEO pay. Rather higher spending on healthcare and yes caused in a minor way by some of the mandates in ACA (birth control).

      But also by adverse selection when the mandate was dropped. There are still many people who see no reason to buy insurance until they need it.

      To me all this shows again that nothing will work until everyone has coverage in one risk pool and everyone pays for it in one way or the other.

      Right now my wife is deep in the healthcare system with expensive care to save her life. I can’t imagine what it’s going to cost and I don’t care. I want her to get the best care possible as conveniently as possible. Thats the way everyone thinks.

      For that I paid taxes since 1965 and now we pay over $2,000 a month for all the coverage we need – income based.

      I see nothing wrong, in fact essential for everyone.

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