Author Topic: Trump Drives Another Nail Into Obamacare’s Coffin  (Read 2103 times)

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Offline John Florida

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Trump Drives Another Nail Into Obamacare’s Coffin
« on: January 09, 2018, 12:55:33 PM »
 H/T Rayra

And fulfills yet another campaign promise.


During the 2016 primary season, Donald Trump pledged to facilitate lower health insurance premiums by permitting coverage to be sold across state lines. Oddly, considering that conservatives have long advocated this as a way of augmenting market competition among insurers, the proposal was ridiculed by his opponents for the Republican presidential nomination. During one debate Marco Rubio actually mimicked Trump’s physical gestures, mocked his references to “lines around the states,” and snidely added, “whatever that means.” Friday, the Trump administration demonstrated what that means by issuing a new regulation allowing association health plans (AHPs) to offer coverage across state lines.




The new regulation, which was published in the Federal Register on January 5, will be available for public comment for 60 days. When it goes into effect, it will allow small employers to band together for the purpose of buying health insurance in the large group market. Specifically, it will “allow employers to form small business health plans based on geography or industry” and permit such plans “to serve employers in a state, city, county or a multi-state metro area.” It can be used to “serve all the businesses in a particular industry nationwide,” and also allows sole proprietors to join small business health plans. The Trump administration, via the U.S. Department of Labor, summarized its intended effect as follows:


https://spectator.org/trump-drives-another-nail-into-obamacares-coffin/
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Offline IronDioPriest

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Re: Trump Drives Another Nail Into Obamacare’s Coffin
« Reply #1 on: January 09, 2018, 02:36:33 PM »
I'd like to see changes for the better codified into law as opposed to regulation. As Trump is demonstrating very adeptly, what is enacted by regulation can be undone just as easily by regulation.
"A strict observance of the written laws is doubtless one of the high duties of a good citizen, but it is not the highest. The laws of necessity, of self-preservation, of saving our country when in danger, are of higher obligation. To lose our country by a scrupulous adherence to written law, would be to lose the law itself, with life, liberty, property and all those who are enjoying them with us; thus absurdly sacrificing the end to the means."

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Offline John Florida

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Re: Trump Drives Another Nail Into Obamacare’s Coffin
« Reply #2 on: January 09, 2018, 04:51:39 PM »
I'd like to see changes for the better codified into law as opposed to regulation. As Trump is demonstrating very adeptly, what is enacted by regulation can be undone just as easily by regulation.


 I can see that happening when he dumps bambicare hopefully later this year.
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Online Syzygy

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Re: Trump Drives Another Nail Into Obamacare’s Coffin
« Reply #3 on: January 09, 2018, 09:21:33 PM »
I'd like to see changes for the better codified into law as opposed to regulation. As Trump is demonstrating very adeptly, what is enacted by regulation can be undone just as easily by regulation.
I agree entirely,  but in this case,  it may be the only option.  I could be totally wrong,  but I think the reason insurance can't be sold across state lines now is not because of federal laws and regulations,  but rather because of those of the states. 
I know in my state (TN),  and probably all the others,  there is an insurance regulatory authority that sets the standards for whatever insurance can or can't be sold in the state. 

Usually these bureaucracies are bought and paid for by the lobbyists of the insurance industry already established in the state,  no different than the bought and paid for legislators that set them up and appoint their donor cronies to head them.  To listen to them tell it,  "it's to protect the consumer",  but in reality it's to protect the vested interests' money making racket,  that being the insurance companies,  who are also big campaign contributors. 

There's already codified federal law they could have,  and should have,  invoked to prevent all this bureaucratic protectionist racket,  and it's in the Constitution:  the interstate commerce clause.  Commerce across state lines is the purview of the federal government,  not the states.  All these arbitrary rules and regulations about what insurance does or doesn't qualify to be sold in whatever particular state are unconstitutional on their face.   Which only goes to show the power and influence of the whole industry,  that they could get state legislatures to put in place all the protections (from out of state competition) for their industry,   when it's obviously unconstitutional to begin with.  And by "power and influence",  I mean  "money"-- it's a very profitable racket,  and legislators come cheap these days. 

Offline Libertas

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Re: Trump Drives Another Nail Into Obamacare’s Coffin
« Reply #4 on: January 10, 2018, 06:35:04 AM »
How is that any different than union or right to work state laws?
We are now where The Founders were when they faced despotism.

Online Syzygy

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Re: Trump Drives Another Nail Into Obamacare’s Coffin
« Reply #5 on: January 10, 2018, 10:07:35 PM »
How is that any different than union or right to work state laws?

You mean in wielding (buying) power and influence in state and federal government?  No different,  really,  but unions are constitutionally sanctioned entities (freedom of assembly/association).  They have the right to petition the government for redress of grievances by virtue of that fact,  but they DON'T have the right to be granted all the special "legal" considerations when airing their grievances,  or when bargaining with an employer. 

That the rules and regs of collective bargaining are heavily weighted in favor of organized labor and against businesses and corporations ain't right,  but their enactment over the years demonstrates very clearly the "power and influence" of organized labor.  Didn't the SCOTUS rule,  several years ago,  that "corporations are people,  too"?  Why aren't they given equal standing when going into any negotiations with labor?

Back in the salad days,  the big three auto makers were doing so well they found it more convenient to cave in to union demands than to stand up to them.  That coupled with competition from the Japanese about put 'em under. 

I fear the same thing will happen at the states' and quite possibly the federal level.  Government employees' unions' and teachers' unions' demands,  for higher pay,  better benefits,  and exorbitant pension bennies,  are usually given into without a fight by the PTB,  only to keep the "civil servants" assuaged and voting the right way.  We peons can petition the government with our grievances concerning this outrage,  but barring any "power and influence" (read "money") to back 'em up,  it's like fartin' in the wind. 

I remember my dad saying,  many years ago,  that between insurance and taxes (i.e. local property taxes,  the main source of revenue to pay "for the children's" education),  the little guy would eventually be unable to afford the property needed to farm.   Damned if he wasn't prescient in that.  But I think insurance and taxes,  at all levels,  and,  yes,  even unions too,   especially government employees' unions and the NEA,  are gonna put a whole lot more people out of business than just the small farmer.  As I understand it,  Illinois is about to go bust for these very reasons. 

Offline Libertas

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Re: Trump Drives Another Nail Into Obamacare’s Coffin
« Reply #6 on: January 11, 2018, 07:22:11 AM »
How is that any different than union or right to work state laws?

You mean in wielding (buying) power and influence in state and federal government?  No different,  really,  but unions are constitutionally sanctioned entities (freedom of assembly/association).  They have the right to petition the government for redress of grievances by virtue of that fact,  but they DON'T have the right to be granted all the special "legal" considerations when airing their grievances,  or when bargaining with an employer. 

That the rules and regs of collective bargaining are heavily weighted in favor of organized labor and against businesses and corporations ain't right,  but their enactment over the years demonstrates very clearly the "power and influence" of organized labor.  Didn't the SCOTUS rule,  several years ago,  that "corporations are people,  too"?  Why aren't they given equal standing when going into any negotiations with labor?

Back in the salad days,  the big three auto makers were doing so well they found it more convenient to cave in to union demands than to stand up to them.  That coupled with competition from the Japanese about put 'em under. 

I fear the same thing will happen at the states' and quite possibly the federal level.  Government employees' unions' and teachers' unions' demands,  for higher pay,  better benefits,  and exorbitant pension bennies,  are usually given into without a fight by the PTB,  only to keep the "civil servants" assuaged and voting the right way.  We peons can petition the government with our grievances concerning this outrage,  but barring any "power and influence" (read "money") to back 'em up,  it's like fartin' in the wind. 

I remember my dad saying,  many years ago,  that between insurance and taxes (i.e. local property taxes,  the main source of revenue to pay "for the children's" education),  the little guy would eventually be unable to afford the property needed to farm.   Damned if he wasn't prescient in that.  But I think insurance and taxes,  at all levels,  and,  yes,  even unions too,   especially government employees' unions and the NEA,  are gonna put a whole lot more people out of business than just the small farmer.  As I understand it,  Illinois is about to go bust for these very reasons.

Public employee unions should NEVER have been allowed to exist, period!  They are antithetical to Republican government as we were Founded, there should have been blood in the streets preventing such insanity...and now these bloated biased bureaucratic nightmares are one of the main reasons the country is in such a state of sh*t!

As for farms (and any small business really) the punitive estate tax laws helped destroy them too...made families sell off their land piece by piece until little or nothing is left of the original property!

Politicians, special interests and cronies betrayed the Founders, the Constitution and all of us...there is no escaping that fact!
We are now where The Founders were when they faced despotism.

Online Syzygy

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Re: Trump Drives Another Nail Into Obamacare’s Coffin
« Reply #7 on: January 11, 2018, 02:16:44 PM »

...
Public employee unions should NEVER have been allowed to exist, period!

...

Even FDR said as much--about the only thing I agree on with the sombitch.