Schumer On Possibility Of Working With Trump On ACA: 'It's Not Me, It's Him'

[DonViejo]

Source: Talking Points Memo



By ESME CRIBB Published MARCH 26, 2017, 11:57 AM EDT

Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) said on Sunday that it is "virtually impossible" for Democrats to work with President Donald Trump to improve Obamacare unless Trump is willing to change his position on repeal.

"We have ideas, they have ideas, to try to improve Obamacare. We never said it was perfect, we always said we'd work with them to improve it. We just said repeal was off the table," Schumer said on ABC's "This Week."

He said that Trump never reached out to Democrats about the Republican bill which was pulled on Friday half an hour before its scheduled House floor vote. Trump blamed Democrats, among others, for the bill's last-minute implosion."The President never called us once about this," Schumer said.

He said that Trump is undermining himself with his threats to let Obamacare "implode completely."

"For the President to say that he'll destroy it or undermine it, that's not presidential. That's petulance," Schumer said. "And it's not going to work."

Read more: http://talkingpointsmemo.com/livewire/chuck-schumer-trump-its-not-me-its-him

[beachbum bob]

1. trump can't/won't work with his own party...and its a hoot to think he would ever work

with democrats...until articles of impeachment are being crafted

[hollowdweller]

2. Pass a stock transaction tax and use it to boost subsidies

Allow medicaid buy in in any state with only 1 provider on the exchange.

Pass law allowing for bargaining for prescription drug prices.

[mr_lebowski]

3. Good ideas.

I also think that it should be required that ALL ins co's doing business in a given state, in any capacity, MUST offer a plan of each tier (bronze, silver, etc) on the exchange. Don't let them get away with ONLY offering plans through employers, and/or picking and choosing specific counties in the state they are going to serve.

If a company offers ANY health ins. to ANYONE in a given state, then they must offer a plan of each tier on the exchange (whether a state exchange or the federal 'fallback' exchange) as well.

I also hate the rule that says 'if you or your spouse's employer offers an insurance plan you could avail yourself of, you are not eligible for any subsidies, no matter your income, or the cost of enrolling in the employer-offered plan'. That is total BS that f*cks over MANY MANY middle class people (like yours truly).

Many (if not most) employers will only offer (some) assistance on premiums for the employee themselves, not their spouse or family members. And most insurers actually charge MORE in premiums for family than they do for the employee. Millions of people out there cannot afford to put their spouse or children on their employer-offered healthcare plan, but they're SOL on a subsidy to buy a plan on the exchange for them, just because their employer OFFERS their plan to family members (typically 100% on the employee's dime).

That tenet has led to a great number of regular working middle-class folk feeling that they are getting screwed-over by ACA.

[LuckyLib]

4. This is key. These are the nuances that could have been worked out had

congress made a good faith effort to actually revise and fix problems like these. No "repeal and replace" rush job for the simple glory of a "win" for Drump and the Republicans was going to do it.

[mpcamb]

5. So if Schumer is worth a tinker's damn, why not bring up competitive drug bidding

at a chance like this?
Yo wanna save Obamacare? Here's a big fraction of the high medical costs.
Shove it under those Republican noses, Chuck, or step down from 'leadership' in the party.

[FakeNoose]

6. Yes insurance companies and Big Pharma profits

... have always been the problem, and also the largest obstacles to any real progress.

Why do you think Hillary's single payer healthcare plan of the early 90's took a nosedive?
The insurance industry and pharmaceuticals are too entrenched, they've got huge lobbies in DC.

It takes more than one guy to beat this, we need everybody on the same page.
Also at least some of the GOP on board, or it will never happen.

[Cha]

7. "Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) said on Sunday that it is "virtually impossible" for

Democrats to work with President Donald Trump to improve Obamacare unless Trump is willing to change his position on repeal."

Anyone can see that.

[Honeycombe8]

8. Keep at it, Schumer! Another Dem said same thing on Morning Joe today.

That of course they'd work with the Repubs to fix Obamacare, but not to repeal it. That the Dems were not consulted about the GOP bill.

Looks like the Dems have their sh*t together and are on the same page. Hey...maybe that's because that's what governing looks like! Someone on Morning Joe even said that they would of course talk about certain things, because that's part of governing, and of the two parties, it's the Democrats who believe in governing.

Bazinga.