Congess needs to come home and stay

Published July 21, 2017

By Tom Campbell

by Tom Campbell, Producer and Moderator, NC SPIN, July 20, 2017.

In their fervor to repeal and replace Obamacare, our Congress has run head first into a wall of political reality: once you extend benefits to people it is almost impossible to take them away. Despite all the bluff and bluster, Congress can’t come up with the needed votes to replace Obamacare, nor do they have the numbers to repeal it. And the threats to let Obamacare collapse are a sure ticket to economic chaos and political upheaval.

Few deny that Obamacare has serious problems that require fixes. Too many younger, healthy people would rather pay the current penalty than sign up, leaving the Affordable Care Act unaffordable to both insurers and those patients who signed up. Too many states, like ours, have only one provider offering coverage to all counties, and premiums to those who are covered are steadily increasing. We could also include on the list of fixes the ability to negotiate costs of prescription drugs, allowing insurers to cross state lines to offer coverage, tort reform and other changes.

Both the House and Senate versions of so-called “replacement” legislation make deep cuts to Medicaid, promising states more flexibility through block grants. North Carolina has been down that road before, discovering too late that assurances of flexibility were more promise than reality. Slice and dice any way you like, but the end result is fewer Medicaid dollars coming to North Carolina.

Our state currently faces a serious healthcare crisis and all the uncertainty coming out of Washington only exacerbates the problem. Many North Carolina hospitals, most of which that depend heavily on Medicaid reimbursements to stay afloat, are already in crisis mode. Sources tell us no fewer than five hospitals, mostly in smaller to medium-sized communities, are inches away from insolvency. Further Medicaid reductions will shutter their doors, leaving thousands of patients with long drives, longer wait times and shortages of beds in those hospitals that do remain open.

It was almost comical that Congress, in an effort to secure support from certain elected representatives, was eager to cut deals and throw money at those states that expanded Medicaid. States like ours, convinced that federal promises to virtually pay all the costs of that expansion were unsustainable, got no consideration. We were essentially penalized for being fiscally responsible.

America is hurtling ever faster to the inevitability of a single-payer national healthcare system, with the payer being government. Our public-private healthcare system is not serving us well and needs triage. Many don’t want a “socialized medicine” solution, but the inability and unwillingness to find better options is taking us down a path on that road.

Instead of taking a summer recess, perhaps Congress needs to go home and stay. If North Carolina’s congressional delegation stays home long enough to stop listening to their party caucuses, lobbyists and each other, they might actually hear the concerns of everyday people and learn the problems facing state and local leaders, as well as healthcare professionals.

Congress should return to Washington when, and only when, they are genuinely ready to do what they were elected to do, mainly take actions that serve all the people in their districts and states. A good case can be made that we won’t be any the worse for their being home.

July 21, 2017 at 10:24 am
Mike Jones says:

Great commentary! Should be re-published in other media outlets.

July 21, 2017 at 10:50 am
Susan Young says:

haha, Tom Campbell, you crack me up. Unfortunately, one second later I realize it's too true to be funny.

July 21, 2017 at 2:52 pm
William Dalton says:

It seems to me that Obamacare couldn't survive without massive subsidies from the Federal Government. The same for many other programs Republicans perennially promise the voters the will repeal, and when elected fail to do so. It may take getting by Democratic intransigence to enact legislation formally repealing (and/or replacing) such programs. It takes nothing but inaction to not appropriate the dollars needed to sustain them. Such actions by Republicans in the past have met with vetoes of spending bills by Demcroatic Presidents intent on thwarting Congress' desires, and the consequent "shut-downs" of the government have stirred public reaction to press the Republicans to relent. That should now be no problem. Congress can pass appropriation bills which leave out funding for Obamacare, etc., and any Republican hold-outs know it will be they who will bear the blame for any shutdown for failure to pass those bills. They will comply. The President will sing them. The government offices Republicans want shut down will be shut down, and nothing else.

Then we will see if the GOP really means what it says.

July 21, 2017 at 2:54 pm
Gray Brendles says:

The issues with ACA are too numerous to list in this reply but let me say that the problem is that Republicans in Washington have no spine. And citizens in NC and the other parts of flyover nation don't understand how close we are to running out of other people's money. Single payer will lead to more of what we have now- government insurance (Medicare and Medicaid) underpaying hospitals and Drs and rich folks paying full price for excellent care. If we could somehow get folks to use price incentives in their health care we might have a chance to save the best most ingenious health care system the world has ever known...

July 23, 2017 at 5:05 pm
Bill Bush says:

Considering how much more we spend per person than other nations that have better outcomes, I think we probably are already paying enough to afford single payer. Remember, we are paying vast amounts for ER care that is not curative and becomes a costly bounce-back next time the person is sick, too. Subtract what we are giving insurance companies for them to deny us care and make back-room discount deals and surely there is a margin to cover more people. Single-payer only works in all the other developed nations. But it can't work here?

July 25, 2017 at 1:22 pm
Wyatt McGhee says:

Single payer, more appropriately titled Government Run Monopoly Healthcare, would be a disaster. There would be no alternative and little accountability. Under such a system, everyone would get to experience the massive problems that veterans have been experiencing at VA Hospitals. Single payer/govt monopoly healthcare is NOT working in other developed countries. It is not usual for people in those countries to have to wait months or years for procedures that we can get as needed in the USA. Sometimes they are told that they are not approved for a procedure that they need. Those who can afford to, come to the USA for medical care in many cases. We DONT need to make our system worse, which is what single payer/govt monopoly healthcare would be.

July 24, 2017 at 3:02 pm
Scottie Godwin says:

You sure got this right. In my opinion that bunch in Congress and Senate will never get anything worth writing about. The people should go to Washington and run that bunch of worthless home. Why can't all the insurance company sell health insurance in all 50 state? Wouldn't that bring the price down, I think it would and have better health insurance. Print more articles like this one. Thank you