Paul Krugman Says Hillary Clinton is Right and Bernie Sanders is Wrong on Healthcare

[riversedge]

Paul Krugman Says Hillary Clinton is Right and Bernie Sanders is Wrong on Healthcare http://www.politicususa.com/2016/01/18/paul-krugman-hillary-bernie-wrong-healthcare.html … via @politicususa




Paul Krugman Says Hillary Clinton is Right and Bernie Sanders is Wrong on Healthcare
By: Hrafnkell Haraldsson


Monday, January, 18th, 2016, 4:12 pm



Paul Krugman has entered the healthcare reform fray on behalf of Hillary Clinton, a fact which will no doubt disappoint many progressives. In a op-ed titled “Health Reform Realities,” Krugman argues that though Obamacare is “a kludge: a somewhat awkward, clumsy device with lots of moving parts,” it works:

Health reform is the signature achievement of the Obama presidency. It was the biggest expansion of the social safety net since Medicare was established in the 1960s. It more or less achieves a goal — access to health insurance for all Americans — that progressives have been trying to reach for three generations. And it is already producing dramatic results, with the percentage of uninsured Americans falling to record lows.

In other words, the Affordable Care Act was a big win for us against Republicans, who fought any reform at all. Most will remember the failed Bill Clinton attempt to get healthcare reform done during his administration. As Krugman puts it,

The question for progressives — a question that is now central to the Democratic primary — is whether these failings mean that they should re-litigate their own biggest political success in almost half a century, and try for something better...................

[Dem2]

1. I assume he's just earned a comfortable spot under the B-Bus

[99th_Monkey]

2. Krugman has been shamelessly & relentlessly shilling for Hillary from day-one.

Why should he change now?

[Dretownblues]

3. The irony

Of Clinton supporters not wanting to let Republicans win, yet already caving to their demands.

[mmonk]

4. As in the movie The Big Short when

the comment is made "surely the banks have other priorities than greed" the answer was you're wrong. (To that effect)

[draa]

5. That's not what he said at all.

What this means, as the health policy expert Harold Pollack points out, is that a simple, straightforward single-payer system just isn’t going to happen. Even if you imagine a political earthquake that eliminated the power of the insurance industry and objections to higher taxes, you’d still have to protect the interests of workers with better-than-average coverage, so that in practice single-payer, American style, would be almost as kludgy as Obamacare.

http://www.nytimes.com/2016/01/18/opinion/health-reform-realities.html?action=click&pgtype=Homepage&clickSource=story-heading&module=opinion-c-col-right-region®ion=opinion-c-col-right-region&WT.nav=opinion-c-col-right-region&_r=0

That's from the original NYT article.

For one he says it isn't going to happen, not that it won't work. The last sentence says exactly that.

you’d still have to protect the interests of workers with better-than-average coverage, so that in practice single-payer, American style, would be almost as kludgy as Obamacare.

What Krugman said is even if we had the political will it will be as kludgy as the ACA. NOT THAT IT WON"T WORK. That's more NO WE CAN'T attitude. I'm not playing that game anymore.

Also, we can't have an honest debate if people are going to lie. It's impossible to fix our problems when half the people are not truthful.

[november3rd]

7. D'accordo

This is the "man was never meant to fly," thesis.

[draa]

8. That's exactly right.

We're failing future generations by our government not trying. Imagine our life without what've we've already gained.

[november3rd]

6. I saw that

His argument is that having to pay way too much for inferior medical outcomes is better than trying to change the system.

Obamacare doesn't solve the cost problem, it doesn't eliminate private insurance piracy, and it prevents leverage in bargaining with pharmaceutical producers and other manufacturers and providers.

Heard the story on NPR yesterday about the people in rural areas getting $50,000 ambulance bills? That is a private insurance--not a single payer--story.

No matter how you dress it up, private insurance is the problem with our system, and with Obamacare, and that's because Max Baucus took single payer off the table in 2009 and Obama went along with it.

This time you're wrong, Krugman.

[draa]

9. My mom just had an operation at Mayo in Jacksonville.

Her bill counting pre-op, the operation, and post-op, as well as any lab work was $75,000. That was for about 10 hours total with the operation accounting for 4 hours of that.

That's what they want to preserve with the status quo. That's just terrible and the fact that people are championing this current system is even worse. And much like the rest of this country it only benefits the rich.

Thankfully her insurance and Medicare will cover most of her bill but I can't imagine what would happen without those. We can and must do better. Thanks.