Reference no: EM13866798 , Length:

Question:

Please respond with 200 words and 1 direct question

Access to affordable health for each citizen is something most Americans can agree on. For decades' politicians have tired to implement different government sponsored healthcare programs with little success. In 2008 then presidential candidate Barak Obama touted healthcare reform as one of his most pressing priorities. Obama was proposing a healthcare system that was a mix of both private and public healthcare options but ultimately coverage would be universal and every citizen would be required to have health insurance. In July 2009 Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi and a group of Democrats from the House revealed what is know called the Affordable Care Act as H.R. 3962. A year later and after much controversy Speaker Pelosi actually stated in a March 2010 press conference just days before the bill was signed into law that "We have to pass the bill so that you can find out what is in it away from the fog of the controversy" (realclearpilitics.com, 2013). Speaker Pelosi has attempted on several occasions to explain her comments which have not been received well by the general public. Just two days later on March 23, 2010 under the guise that if you liked your healthcare plan you could keep it, that on average premiums would decrease $2500 for a family, and that the healthcare mandate was a penalty and not a tax President Obama signed the bill into law.

With most Americans still skeptical of the new healthcare law the situation quickly spiraled downward with the initial rollout of the lauded healthcare plan. At best the initial rollout was a dismal failure with an unresponsive web site and limited market options. Then to drive the preverbal nails in the Affordable Care Act coffin when the law went into effect rather than decreasing premiums, premiums rose sharply and will continue to do so into the foreseeable future. Also people that were promised time and again by the President that they would be able to keep their health plans were forced out of their plans to meet new healthcare mandates. What made matters even worse for the administration was while the American people were still angry about increased premiums and losing care footage of one of the Affordable Care Act architects went viral. Jonathan Gruber a MIT economist and one of the architects of the the Affordable Care Act explained in several academic panels that the Affordable Care Act was able to pass due to the lack of transparency and the stupidity of the American electorate (cnn.com, 2014). With these revelations in 2013 President Obama was awarded as the political liar of the year by politifact for telling the American people they could keep their health insurance when he knew well that under the new healthcare mandate that existing plans would have to change (politifact.com, 2013). At this point many in the Democratic party and in the media were unable to defend the Presidents questionable actions. Then to make matter worse rather than just admitting its faults the administration tried to distance itself from Gruber and his comments saying he wasn't involved in helping to writing the plan. Only to find out latter that Gruber was reward at the tune of $392,000 and intimately involved in developing Obamacare.

At this point one's position in regard to the Affordable Care Act means little because with the latest Supreme Court ruling it is law of the land. The most troubling facet of the Affordable Care Act implementation is the repeated and alarming unethical actions of our elected officials. It is very clear that the creation and implementation of the Affordable Care Act involved both faulty evidence and reasoning. As previously stated most citizens are in favor of healthcare reform so that quality care is available for everyone but the ends do not justify the means if deceit and faulty evidence is used repeatedly to gain approval.

https://www.cnn.com/2014/11/12/politics/gruber-obamacare-third-video/index.html

https://www.politifact.com/truth-o-meter/article/2013/dec/12/lie-year-if-you-like-your-health-care-plan-keep-it/

https://www.realclearpolitics.com/video/2013/11/17/david_gregory_asks_pelosi_about_pass_the_bill_so_you_can_find_out_whats_in_it_comment.html