All signs point to the end of Obamacare.
(I know, it wasn't that long ago that some were saying the same about our country, what with enemies both human and viral threatening our borders and our way of life. Of course, the election's over, so now we don't hear anything about dying Africans.)
But I digress. With the Congressional Republican realignment and the Supreme Court's second thoughts, PPACA faces threats both legislative and judicial. Both of which are very real.
Recommended For You
But the rest of the country remains as conflicted (or schizophrenic?) as ever. Trying to make sense of theses poll numbers can be as frustrating – and clear – as talking to my teenage son.
But let's start with the easiest one: Since his executive immigration decree, President Obama's ratings among Hispanics are through the roof. (No kidding, right?) But the kicker, according to Gallup, is that nearly 70 percent of Americans "polled say the GOP isn't cooperating enough with President Barack Obama, while 57 percent say it's Obama who's not cooperating enough with the GOP."
Isn't this the same group who just voted them in there? What the hell? So much for a honeymoon…
In other news, the numbers reveal results as mixed as ever:
- Despite some Republicans still screaming about abortion, the CDC reports abortions have fallen by double-digits over the last decade, hitting "historic lows." Most importantly, the contentious post-20-week abortion everyone wants to do away with? Yeah, they make up less than 1.5 percent of abortions. That's hardly an epidemic – but then again, neither was Ebola.
- Meanwhile, HHS (which means grain of salt) claims that hospital errors and readmissions have fallen by nearly 20 percent since PPACA went live, saving thousands of lives. This is an area that needs a lot more work; I'm just not sure the feds are the ones to be touting efficiency. It's like getting an abstinence lecture from Gwyneth Montenegro. (Don't click that link at work.) Or a lesson on class from a congressional aide. All I'm saying is we could probably stand to get a better role model.
- And in the land of real numbers, the exchanges have done almost nothing to either hold down the rising costs of specialty drugs or increase market competition. Out-of-pocket costs are rising because of plan cost-sharing measures that are driving up everyone's bills, according to number crunchers at Avalere Health. And increased competition? Fuggehdaboutit. According to the GAO, "We found that, while several insurers participated in each state's individual, small group, and large group health insurance markets in 2013, enrollment was concentrated among the three largest insurers in most states. Specifically, in each of the three market segments, the three largest insurers had at least 80 percent of the total enrollment in at least 37 states."
So, in other words, while we bicker, and the politicians lecture, for the rest of us it's business as usual…
© Touchpoint Markets, All Rights Reserved. Request academic re-use from www.copyright.com. All other uses, submit a request to [email protected]. For more inforrmation visit Asset & Logo Licensing.
