So Texas Senator Ted Cruz made a really long, disjointed speech that his supporters thought was an Affordable Care Act "filibuster" and it meant absolutely nothing and yada, yada, yada...
Yawn. I'm tired of his schtick already, and he's only a rookie.
Anyway, in the fact-based world, numbers matter. Today's report from the Department of Health & Human Services is the final projection on Health Insurance Marketplace premiums, and it's easy to see why the president himself now calls his landmark legislative achievement "Obamacare", just as his detractors do. However, they do it to deride; he does it because he's rightfully proud it bears his name.
Key points:
*Individuals will have an average of 53 qualified health plan choices in states where HHS will fully or partially run the Marketplace
*Premiums before tax credits will be more than 16 percent lower than projected
*Premiums tend to be lower in states where there is more competition and transparency
*Medical inflation has slowed to the lowest rate in 50 years
The full report is here:
http://aspe.hhs.gov/health/reports/2013/MarketplacePremiums/ib_marketplace_premiums.cfm
There will be bumps in the road. Opponents will jump on them and scream, "Socialism!" and "Death Panels!" and "I don't wanna eat my vegetables!" Expect it--it's their brand. As with any major undertaking, it won't be perfect. But then, nothing is. Except baseball.
The exchanges open October 1; coverage begins January 1, 2014. As a single-payer advocate, Obamacare isn't the plan that I initially wanted, but as an uninsured, self-employed man with a pre-existing condition, it is the one I welcome.
And the fight for a single-payer system goes on...
