This is not a strategy. This is only another pathetic effort to get rid of Obamacare… and Americans be damned.
Trump is advocating ending Obamacare subsidies and instead sending money directly to individuals to use for their own healthcare costs — generally through HSAs (and in discussions, sometimes FSAs). The specific amounts proposed in legislation backing his view are approximately $1,000 to $1,500 per person per year, depending on age and income. New York Post+1
Why This Matters (Cost Impact)
- The current Obamacare subsidies cover much more than $1,000–$1,500 per person for many families. Without them, premiums for some could double or increase by thousands of dollars a year. Reuters
- The Republican idea is that by giving people funds directly, they’ll buy insurance or pay for care themselves. Critics say these amounts are far less than what the subsidies provide, especially for middle-and low-income families. Politico
The Republican idea is naive, short-sighted, unworkable and just plain stupid driven by the far right Project 2025 flawed ideology.
It’s not just a matter of premiums and subsidies, it’s a matter of being able to buy adequate coverage and afford out-of- pocket costs.
Fix what may not work with Obamacare, but don’t make up false narratives at the expense of tens of millions of Americans.
Tell your employer you want to give up your coverage and take $1,500 instead. Give up your Medicare and take $1,000 in its place to pay your medical bills.
QUINNSCOMMENTARY 
You are ignoring the fact that healthcare is consuming a greater and greater share of the whole economy. At some point it will break all of us. It used to be that insurance was for a calamity we couldn’t afford and the risk was spread out among all policyholders. Now health insurance is taking on routine costs like vaccinations and routine visits to the doctor. The insurance companies get a percentage for things that used to be or should be out of pocket. Obamacare was an attempt at insurance but just added to the problem. What the answer is I don’t know but you don’t seem to see the train wreck coming and just clamor for more of the same.
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I’m not ignoring anything. I know exactly what you are saying and you are right. I managed employer health plans for 50 years and saw the transition from true insurance to covering every penny I spend… and then attempts to go back.
However, that does not mean we flip a switch and give everyone $2000 to fend for themselves. It’s way too late for that.
We have the Trump extreme and the Bernie Sanders extreme, we need a middle ground that includes moving toward real insurance with reasonable cost sharing in terms of premiums and out of pocket costs at the point of service.
Americans don’t even understand the connections between using services, deductibles and premiums. They don’t see spending anything, not a penny, on health care as their responsibility or as a priority over other spending.
So, we need an approach to manage all that on a uniform national basis and gradually make the transition where costs and expectations can be manage while at the same time people know they won’t be hit with catastrophic costs inhibiting their ability to receive care.
I bet it’s far more acceptable to pay modestly higher taxes than to be faced with a $5,000 deductible. The reality is a universal insurance program need not cost more than citizens, employers and governments are paying now, just make it fair to all.
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“I bet it’s far more acceptable to pay modestly higher taxes than to be faced with a $5,000 deductible. “
You would lose that bet.
Americans are not interested in paying for their own health care coverage, let alone someone else’s coverage. Need proof?
We have been running $1+ Trillion in annual deficits every year since Health Reform became law. That is not a bug. It is an essential feature of Health Reform – where Democrats promised people someone else will pay to make your coverage “affordable”. Obama lied when he said that he would veto any Health Reform proposal that added even “one thin dime” to annual deficits.
Nope, Americans want the best health care coverage YOUR money will buy. And, Congress is willing to lie, to provide that, in exchange for votes.
For example, the most recent Democrat proposal in the senate would have stretched the super duper dollop of Exchange subsidies for three years. Was there any tax, or funding scheme to pay for that? Hell no. They simply wanted to buy votes and add it into the deficit spending.
With respect to Health Reform, Congress has already confirmed that they are unwilling to increase taxes assessed on current Americans in amounts sufficient to fund Health Reform.
So, I’ll believe you once Congress passes taxes sufficient to fully fund the promises they made 15 years ago. Then, we can talk about your changes.
Finally, I can guarantee you Congress is not willing to tax all 345+ Million Americans – which is the only “fair” structure for all Americans. “Fair” means treating me as I want to be treated – and – I can guarantee you , most Americans don’t want to pay for their own coverage, let alone subsidize someone else’s coverage.
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