It is as I feared. I mentioned last week that Obamacare supporters are pulling out all the stops to fight repeal. A messaging expert on our side recommended this week that we push back by stressing how much Obamacare hurts people. The Truth Squad has been doing that ever since March 23, 2010 when this dreadful law was passed.
I pulled together some stories – some from this week, some from earlier – showing how Obamacare is still hurting people, starting with the gems that life expectancy is going down and healthcare costs are going up under the ACA. I have a couple of stories describing how Obamacare has hurt the restaurant business, and other stories about how premiums have spiked up for 50 million people, how millennials are getting a raw deal under Obamacare, and how Medicaid expansion is hurting disabled people and blowing holes in state budgets. The Truth Squad did some commentary tweets this week based on expert suggestions to drive home the point:
- Obamacare has failed and is hurting people.
- Repeal will stop the bleeding. We can’t let this law hurt any more people. Repeal will give immediate relief.
- Repeal will make healthcare more secure and assist the victims of Obamacare’s false promises.
The links to all these and more will be in the wrap-up. If you tweet, we suggest you use the hashtag #ObamacareHurtsPeople. It will be kind of hard for the Left to take that one over. There aren’t many tweets with that hashtag yet but, with your help, we can make it a thing. Go get’em!
Links
From the last week:
Obamacare driving healthcare spending higher
http://freebeacon.com/issues/record-high-health-care-spending-hits-3-2-trillion-2015/?utm_source=Freedom+Mail&utm_campaign=cab08a7f50-EMAIL_CAMPAIGN_2016_12_05&utm_medium=email&utm_term=0_b5e6e0e9ea-cab08a7f50-45628225
Life expectancy decreasing under Obamacare
https://www.washingtonpost.com/national/health-science/us-life-expectancy-declines-for-the-first-time-since-1993/2016/12/07/7dcdc7b4-bc93-11e6-91ee-1adddfe36cbe_story.html?hpid=hp_rhp-top-table-main_lifeexpectancy-12am%3Ahomepage%2Fstory&utm_term=.60badbafa764
#ObamacareHurtsPeople – we all pay more because subsidized insurance causes overconsumption of medical services
https://fee.org/articles/you-now-pay-for-your-neighbors-weight-problem-thanks-obamacare/
Millennials “avoiding the Affordable Care Act for one simple reason: It’s not a good deal for us.”
http://www.roanoke.com/opinion/commentary/barnes-why-aren-t-virginia-s-millennials-signing-up-for/article_16d95a3e-2b1c-505c-b51a-48e907fe8a1e.html
Consequence of Medicaid expansion’s spike in ER visits: worse health outcomes http://www.forbes.com/sites/theapothecary/2016/10/20/medicaid-expansion-causes-surge-in-er-visits/#3ebf43487b0d
Texas restaurant closes because of Obamacare’s “oppressive penalties”; 50+ people thrown out of work.
http://dailycaller.com/2016/12/06/texas-restaurant-closes-and-the-owner-is-blaming-obamacare/
Obamacare’s hi premiums damaging independent docs, fueling consolidation wave
http://medicaleconomics.modernmedicine.com/medical-economics/news/obamacare-rising-costs-creating-challenges-physicians
From November:
If you support Obamacare, you’re deliberately trying to hurt people. Here’s proof -
50 million Americans hurt by Obamacare price increases
http://www.forbes.com/sites/theapothecary/2016/10/27/the-5-lamest-excuses-for-obamacares-22-premium-hike/#4a4b36596189
Rates have increased 116% cumulatively since ACA, more than double the pre-Obamacare rate.
http://www.forbes.com/sites/theapothecary/2016/10/27/the-5-lamest-excuses-for-obamacares-22-premium-hike/#4a4b36596189
Anger growing over price hikes; photos of new bills being posted on social media
http://circa.com/scitech/health/obamacare-open-enrollment-has-begun
Number of counties down to one insurer doubles to 1,000
https://www.washingtonpost.com/local/some-face-fewer-choices-or-none-under-affordable-care-act/2016/10/28/c931e89c-9ce6-11e6-b552-b1f85e484086_story.html
Obamacare is a poor value; hi deductibles keep people from using their plans. “I’m not happy”
http://www.bloomberg.com/politics/articles/2016-11-04/some-find-care-unaffordable-even-with-obamacare-coverage
12 restaurant brands have gone bankrupt b/c of Obamacare. More money for premiums = less for pizza
http://www.foxbusiness.com/markets/2016/11/02/obamacare-is-bankrupting-restaurants-ceo-warns.html
“After Subsidies, Many Young Singles Will Pay at Least $2,484 a Year in Obamacare Premiums”
http://freebeacon.com/issues/subsidies-many-young-singles-will-pay-least-2484-year-obamacare-premiums/?utm_source=Freedom+Mail&utm_campaign=7eab572993-EMAIL_CAMPAIGN_2016_11_02&utm_medium=email&utm_term=0_b5e6e0e9ea-7eab572993-45628225
Alaska Medicaid expansion starting to suck the money out of other state services; courts and UAlaska hit
http://www.newsminer.com/opinion/community_perspectives/no-room-for-medicaid-expansion-in-alaska/article_00d3d31c-9c7b-11e6-801f-7312d6a1f8dd.html
IL Medicaid expansion cutting access for most vulnerable; disabled wait-listed b/c of perverse funding incentives
https://www.illinoispolicy.org/illinois-medicaid-expansion-enrollment-continues-to-climb-putting-vulnerable-at-risk/
We finish with commentary tweets:
Here’s the retort to all trying to save the ACA: Obamacare has failed and is hurting people.
Repeal will stop the bleeding. We can’t let this law hurt any more people. Repeal will give immediate relief.
Repeal will make healthcare more secure and assist the victims of Obamacare’s false promises.