4.8 million people do not make enough money to qualify for Federal health care subsidies. Under the Affordable Care Act they were supposed to qualify for Medicaid. But the Republicans have conspired to exclude them from coverage. The Supreme Court declared that this portion of the Act passed by both houses of the Congress and signed by the President violated states’ rights, and 24 Republican states exercised their “rights” by assuring that these 4.8 million people would not be provided care.
And so, the Wall Street Journal in a broad ranging front page article reported on Monday, for example, that a diabetic hair stylist in Alabama earning $800 per month does not qualify for Medicaid under state standards. He, therefore, must “choose between paying the bills and buying medicine.” It is not clear that Chief Justice Roberts and his enabled Alabama Republicans take pride in this despicable result.
As the Journal reports, it is clear, however, that some Republican states including are reeling from the political repercussions in part fueled by hospitals who are losing money because of the state’s decisions. In particular, Utah and Florida are reconsidering.
Republicans believe that Obama Care is their ticket to political victory. But as the newly enrolled patients who do qualify for subsidies grow and the consequences of Republican callous greed in the Medicaid context become clearer, the ticket they grasp may turn out to be fool’s gold.
Amerikans need to learn to vote with their feet. A poor Texan who doesn't qualify for Medicaid in TX will qualify in Colorado and can even grow his own medical marijuana.
Every poor, sick, hypochondriac, married, breeding and risk-averse female should move to Colorado and every young, enterprising, risk-taking, single and childfree male should move to Texas, of course.
We have to ask ourselves: where would Carnegie and all those giants of Amerikan enterprise settle?
Posted by: Jimbino | 02/12/2014 at 03:12 PM