After fix, Obama vows not to 'gut' health care reform
Cleveland (CNN) - Hours after announcing changes to his signature legislative accomplishment, President Barack Obama pledged Thursday to keep the Affordable Care Act's essential elements in place despite growing pressure in Congress and elsewhere.
"We're not going to gut the law. We're going to fix what needs to be fixed," Obama said, blaming an "entrenched" attitude and a botched rollout for distracting from the measure's reforms.
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"We always knew this was going to be hard," Obama said. "There's a reason folks have tried to do it for 100 years and haven't done it."
Speaking at the ArcelorMittal steel plant in Cleveland, Obama said he wasn't going to revert to a "broken system" of care that allowed insurance companies to deny coverage based on preexisting conditions.
"I'm going to see this through," the president vowed.
His remarks in Ohio came on the same day that Obama revealed a new administration effort to allow Americans who have lost their individual health insurance plans to keep them for another year, a major shift in policy that came in the wake of accusations he made misleading statements when selling the law in 2009 and 2010.
Speaking at the White House, Obama said he would work tirelessly to win back support from Americans who may have lost faith in his administration after the flawed Obamacare rollout.
His remarks in Ohio sought to underscore what the White House says is a bright spot of his record: economic gains and a boost in manufacturing thanks to a revitalized auto industry.
Obama said his team had bet on "American ingenuity," and pointed to the steel plant's success as an example of American resilience.
ArcelorMittal - a Luxembourg-based steel giant whose Cleveland facility is located within a sprawling complex of plants situated on the Cayahoga River - is the largest supplier of steel to U.S. auto manufacturers, which have rebounded after a federal government bailout in 2008 and 2009.
A resurgent auto industry has helped bolster manufacturing gains in the United States, though the added jobs haven't erased the massive losses the sector withstood over the past decade. During his re-election bid, the president set a goal of one million new manufacturing jobs over the course of his second term. The sector's current pace of job creation isn't enough for that goal to be met in the next three years.
"It's not just how much you get in your paycheck. It's the sense of, 'I'm making something and helping to build this economy," Obama said Thursday.
"It tells us what we're worth as a community," he added.
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"So, a person who escapes the Holocaust, comes to this country and becomes a success story via the old-fashioned way, is now a criminal? Presumably he did not follow the accepted GOP script on how the wealthy should act."
Actually, TRTP, one might argue that Soros did follow the GOP/Teatroll script for how the wealthy should act: he was convicted in France in 2005 of insider trading that occurred in 1989. Moreover, he's terribly fond of currency manipulation. While I appreciate his support he provides to the progressive cause and the philanthropy he does, there are still aspects of him that are despicable to me. I'll defend him all day long from the idiocy about socialism/communism, etc., but there are some legit criticisms of his investment and financial activities.
You knew this arrogant deceitful President had no intention of truly fixing this nightmare of a law. Actually, it is IMPOSSIBLE to "fix" it. It is a tangled web of lies and deceit that can only be totally REPEALED in order to save the American people.
So the disastrous Obamacare train wreck rolls on, full steam ahead. Democrats in Congress need to start looking for new jobs after the 2014 and 2016 election.
Hillary Clinton in 2016? HA!! Obama just shut down that possiblity. Do you honestly think the American people are going to trust another Democrat in the WHite House after this disaster and the lose of their healthcare insurance?
ACA is a Law. Three hour Hospital costs 18,000 dollars, for simple PROCEDURE. Nonsense. You are bunch of paid thugs from GOP to cry on Obama. Yes this nation needs this ACA Law. GOP thugs are crazy to cry on trivial stuff. They need Wars, Guns. Be educated. ACA is a nation needed Law, for a long time.
"Well,
Obama Care may be alright if tons of people didn't lose/lost their jobs. Just saw where Lockheed Martin is laying off 4000 workers. All because of Obama Care."
Well, no, that's 100% false. LM explicitly stated it's due to budget cuts in defense as a result of sequestration. But that's ok...we know you guys will lie about whatever you think will help you demonize the ACA. Are you going to persist with the lie? Shall I quote the LM spokesperson?
i dont ned no insurance an docter thas why tha emirgincy rom is for
"Hillary Clinton in 2016? HA!! Obama just shut down that possiblity."
President Romney agrees.
Your "fix" just did Mr President.......maybe next time voters will elect someone who has actual experience rather than someone who reads a mean teleprompter......
This is worse than Iraq. P.S.–they hate us for our freedom.
"Do you honestly think the American people are going to trust another Democrat in the WHite House after this disaster and the lose of their healthcare insurance?"
Do you honestly think that you're still going to be able to make these arguments once the website is fixed and people start realizing that the overwhelming majority of people who shop on the exchanges are getting comparable or better health insurance coverage for less out of pocket expense than they were paying before? It's fine though if you and the rest of the GOP/Teatrolls and the MSM want to cling to this issue that only effects a small percentage of people...the longer you do, the sweeter your comeuppance will be for the rest of us.
@Sniffit,
Now surely you are intelligent enough to know that what our President suggested as a "fix" is not possible, right? You know that insurance companies have actuaries that are already in place based on the ACA as the law of the land and cannot magically be changed. You know he can't tell insurance companies, by fiat, to just forget that part of the law and offer people what he has deemed "junk" policies, correct? You can kick and scream all you want about anything but you would never want any one person to have so much power to say "forget about that part of the law". Don't yell at me or be angry (although I'm a big boy and can certainly take it). Just please please acknowledge that the press conference today is no solution and not feasibly possible. I hope you have the guts to admit that. Feel free to chime in if you want, Real TP or Data. But please stay focused on what the president said today about the law and his intentions to "fix" it.
Goodness. I haven't read such delicious Rush Limbaugh talking parrot garbage in months. Glad I stuck around for the laughs.
Or do I mean Glenn Beck? One gets confused as to who is #1 in TeaPerville talking garbage meme.
Fix it. Or take all the cancelled guys to government-exchanges. Drop the premium–we poured trillions in Iraq, it is nothing.
Were there mistakes made with ACA? Sure. But.........I appreciate the fact that somebody, anybody, is trying to do something about this runaway health care system. A system that is ranked 37th in world wide studies, right behind Costa Rica. A health care system where we pay more for less then anybody in the world. To try to fix something in this corrupt a condition, I would have no idea where to start. Way above my grey matter's ability. But someone needs to do something, and SOON. This president tried, there have been errors, and mistakes. Trying to fix something this big there will be errors and mistakes for some time to come. But standing back and screaming he lied is not helping anyone. Letting people keep throwing away money on worthless policies is not helping anyone. Instead of making ranting posts like a seven year old, why not try offering solutions. I think ANY ideas are valid, except keeping things as they are. If we leave things as they were you can only depend on them getting worse.
"We're going to fix what needs to be fixed,"
Yes. Let's do that. Or not, depending on the political spectrum of where one sits these days:
1. Moan, groan, and complain.
2. Try to correct (and / or otherwise fix).
"We're not going to gut the law. We're going to fix what needs to be fixed," Obama said"
--------
He doesn't realize it yet, but this is completely out of his hands. Has has botched the ACA so badly that it threatens to make Democrats extinct in 2014. His own party is the greatest threat to Obamacare as we now know it. The ACA is radioactive and toxic to all who are near it. Kill it for the good of us all.
"Toothpaste is out of the tube. The president can't fix this one. He can't magically go back to the insurance companies, who have actuaries for next year already in place based on the current ACA plan and there's just no way to change that. This is not the insurance companies fault, either. They did what they had to do to comply with the law. I know that people like Sniffit will try to spin it that way but they were complying with the law of the land and there's no way out of it now. "
So you admit that a month ago when the GOP/Teatrolls shut down the gov't and cost us $24B, their proposals would not have worked, were too late and really were only designed to hurt the implementation of the ACA. Nice to know. Would have been nice to see you acknowledging that a month ago...but that's ok, you were so busy trying to sell the GOP/Teatrolls' turd proposals and justify their shutdown shenanigans that you must've just forgot.
I'm not a fan of Obama even trying to "fix" this. It's not broken. The ACA was designed to get people insured and to make sure that insurance provides a minimum basic level of coverage. It's deeply woven into the mechanisms by which it will lower premiums and medical costs. That requires insurers to stop selling bunk insurance products that insure almost nothing.
For such an intelligent man I am utterly amazed at our President's ability to realize his current predicament and the world of s@#t he is in right now.
I am reading all over the place that many Dems sill favor a legislative fix. This could get real interesting. I will not be possible to pass a bill to fix without the support of House Republicans. Republicans have been saying since the bill was passed that bad things were going to happen and their predictions are all coming true. Obama and the Dems called Republicans all sorts of unkind names for expressing their concerns. Obamacare was passed with just Dem vortes, they own it 100%. When the bill was being crafted Obama and the Dems had little interest in Republican input. They did not need it, they controled the DC world and could pass whatever they wanted, Republicans did not have enought votes to stop them. Now Dems want to pass bills to fix Obamacare so they can try and save themselves from the 2014 election. Can't do it wihout Repubicans. Republicans will want to make changes to Obamacare that Dems do not want. Zero chance of any Republican votes unless Dems compromise big time. More troubles are down the road for Obamacare. CBO estimates tens or millions will lose employer based plans just like is happening now with individual. Troubles are far from over, much more to come. Would not want to be a Dem looking down the road to the 2014 election. No way voters will want to give Dems the same control of Washington they had in Obama's first two years. No way will voters want the Dems to have that much power again so they can dump more disasters like Obamacare on their heads.
Obamacare is like having the Department of Motor Vehicles take over your health care plan.
The same people, just like the personnel at the DMV will be administering the program.
You will have the same efficiency as the DMV.
You will have the same customer service as the DMV.
Tom l., I can use your argument to make the argument that Obamacare should not repealed. You know that insurance companies have already put plans in place based on the ACA as the law of the land and cannot magically be changed. You know he can't tell insurance companies, by fiat, to just forget about the whole law and offer people what they used to have, correct? Just please please acknowledge that a repeal is no solution and not feasible, OK?
By the way, actuaries can be fired.
""Hillary Clinton in 2016? HA!! Obama just shut down that possiblity."
After failing to stop ACA with lies, rumors, posturing, money, threats, hostage-taking, and whining, I would buy a ticket to watch the conservatives faces seeing Ms.Clinton or whichever liberal makes it, taking the oath of office moving the Progressive agenda forward again.
Remember how Mr.Clinton came out smelling like a rose and retained popularity in the end after The Persecution?
Mr.Cruz, you are the standard bearer – please make this dream come true and run for office – and tell us your philosophy on every little thing that pops into your head!
"Now surely you are intelligent enough [blah blah blah]"
===
First, the phrase or word you're apparently look for is "actuarial calculations" or perhaps "actuarials." "Actuaries" are people.
Second, nice spin. He's not telling anyone to ignore anything by fiat. He's offering them an opportunity to take a temporary exemption if they'd like. It's long settled law that the POTUS has discretion in terms of enforcement (Heckler v. Chaney). To the extent that practical matters interfere, such that it may be too late for some insurers to "un-cancel" their policies or adjust their actuarial calculations to accurately determine premiums pricing were they to do so (resulting in them playing it safe with much higher premiums), etc., that includes the possibility that some people will choose to continue buying non-insurance, well, the same thing applies to any action the GOP/Teatrolls demanded be taken a month ago and any action the legislature attempts to take now, such as attempting to order insurers to continue providing those plans. In fact, ordering them to do so would be severely damaging to the ACA's implementation...the continued existence of those plans in general would severely damage the cost control mechanisms of the ACA, just like it's been part of the source for skyrocketing costs in the first place. That's why the GOP/Teatrolls have been demanding we do things like that, and why the insurance companies have consistently said that we shouldn't. The ransom the GOP/Teatrolls' demanded while shutting down the gov't is subject to the exact same arguments...and I made it at the time....too damaging to the cost control mechanisms and too late in terms of practical concerns. The bills from Landrieu in the Senate and Upton in the House are also subject to the exact same arguments.
The only responsible way to try to offer a fix at this point is to offer it and leave it up to insurers, state commissioners and consumers whether they wish to take it. If they don't, for whatever reason, then so be it and Obama has to eat that crow if people are mad about it. Legislating it as mandatory that insurers go back to offering those plans, however, would be exponentially worse because it would trigger all of the actuarial problems we're talking about AND cause premiums to rise sharply AND eviscerate a major source of cost control built into the ACA. I suppose that is why you're so desperate to argue that we should do just that. You no doubt daydream about such a scenario and the fun you'd have disingenuously claiming that the higher premiums were caused by the ACA, as opposed to what would be the reality: that they were caused by gutting the ACA's cost control mechanisms.
@Sniffit,
"Well, no, that's 100% false. LM explicitly stated it's due to budget cuts in defense as a result of sequestration. But that's ok...we know you guys will lie about whatever you think will help you demonize the ACA. Are you going to persist with the lie? Shall I quote the LM spokesperson?"
Nice!
You Can Keep Your Plan If You Want
Obamacare is like having the Department of Motor Vehicles take over your health care plan.
The same people, just like the personnel at the DMV will be administering the program.
You will have the same efficiency as the DMV.
You will have the same customer service as the DMV.
November 14, 2013 05:20 pm at 5:20 pm
---------------------------–
Customer service at the DMV is far better than customer service at most insurance companies when they have to pay out. Strangely, my checks never get lost in the mail room the way my claims always do. With the DMV you actually get what you pay for, or don't pay for in some states.
There is nothing more arrogant than telling people that they bought "junk". You have no idea about their plans at all. You have no idea what their individual situation is and why they decided to purchase that insurance. But, that's ok. Keep insulting them and their intelligence. I guess we'll have to see how much people like being told what to do and how stupid they were before. I'm sure they just love having strangers tell them how dumb they are. That's a great way to win people over.