Why Obama’s Not Talking About His Health Care Law In This Election

[Better Believe It]

Why Obama’s Not Talking About Health Care
By: Jon Walker
January 26, 2012

In addition to the individual mandate being extremely unpopular, opinions about the entire Affordable Care Act have remained negative and been trending downward. The Kaiser Family Foundation poll found 44 percent view the law unfavorably while just 37 percent now view it favorably.

This is why during the State of the Union President Obama gave only the briefest passing mention to his signature health care law, and he didn’t even mention it by name. The State of the Union was a political speech. It is now clear that Obama so terribly mismanaged the politics of health care reform that the law is a serious net negative for the Obama campaign.

There is no way Obama could have spent more time talking about the biggest legislative action of his presidency and still have received the incredibly broad approval he did get from people who watched the speech. Don’t expect the issue of health care to be brought up by choice by Democrats in the upcoming campaign.



http://fdlaction.firedoglake.com/2012/01/26/why-obamas-not-talking-about-health-care/

[DJ13]

1. "..... the law is a serious net negative for the Obama campaign"

Which is probably why the elites are pushing so hard to secure the GOP nomination for Romney, as he is the only GOP candidate that cant go on the offensive on that issue.

[Loge23]

2. It's so bad, it's good?

I keep hoping they scrap the darn thing and start all over on single pay as the focus.
The problem of health care accessibility and affordability is no solved by this bill, let alone the enforcment of it's most controversial provision: mandatory coverage.
It was a dog from the start, as soon as single-pay was taken off the table.

[patrice]

21. Perhaps, along with tools such as the PCORI (see my post below) it will be a good lever for this

See HR 676 Expanded & Improved Health Care for All the text of which is linked about half-way down here:

http://www.pnhp.org/

[cliffordu]

3. Another cut 'n paste drive-by

From Firedog lake, too.

I wonder if the Kaiser family have any stake in for profit healthcare......

[AtomicKitten]

4. Except when he does ...

Obama Touts Health Care Reform in Portland, Maine
http://video.mpbn.net/video/1458187773/

On Earth Day, Obama administration touts healthcare law's green benefits
http://thehill.com/blogs/healthwatch/public-global-health/157319-hhs-touts-healthcare-reform-laws-benefits-on-earth-day

Obama campaign promotes health care law
http://content.usatoday.com/communities/theoval/post/2011/12/obama-campaign-promotes-health-care-law/1

[zipplewrath]

5. Except that he didn't

The comment was about the SOTU address. It was notible that there was not even as much mention of it as last year, where he talked about "fixes" needed.

And the congress doesn't really like to mention it at all. Stick 'em in a crowd that is closing the donut hole and they might bring it up. There aren't many other large crowds where they wanna talk about it though, since most folks haven't noticed it, and won't for a long time. The first that may could well be the ones hit by the mandate.

[uponit7771]

7. The title of the OP has nothing to do with the SOTU address

[zipplewrath]

20. But the CONTENT did

You did read the content right? Their point is very clearly stated there.

[AtomicKitten]

29. The Affordable Care Act passed in December 2009.

It was signed in March 2010.

Pres O talked about it in both his 2010 and 2011 SOTU address.

In the 2012 SOTU he referred to it saying: "I will not go back to the days when health insurance companies had unchecked power to cancel your policy, deny your coverage, or charge women differently than men."

He did and does talk about the Affordable Care Act.

[zipplewrath]

30. And that single line was referenced in the OP

And they noted that he mention a single line, and not by name.

And the reference last year was to something that had to be fixed.

[Better Believe It]

8. You're right! Obama really pushed it hard in his SOTU election campaign address!

He said ..........." "

And ....... " "

Why, it's such a big vote getter I thought he'd never stop talking about it!

Thanks for you're information.

If you can't afford private health care insurance in 2014 how much do you think your fine will be?

[AtomicKitten]

19. "Thanks for you're information." I am information?

You're title (lol), um, your thread title:

"Why Obama’s Not Talking About His Health Care Law IN THIS ELECTION"

[Better Believe It]

24. Yes you is!

[ProSense]

6. You'll

enjoy this:

Sebelius v Stewart on Health Care
http://www.dailykos.com/story/2012/01/24/1057963/-Sebelius-v-Stewart-on-Health-Care

Here's another chart from the Kaiser Poll:

[SidDithers]

9. +1...nt

Sid

[great white snark]

10. "it's constant positive movement. Constant progress."

Thank you ProSense.

[zipplewrath]

32. It was a lateral shift

Constantly suggesting this was anything but a rearrangement of the insurance market won't change the reality. In 10 years we'll be talking about HCR the same way we have been talking about DADT and DOMA.

[Uncle Joe]

13. That's brings up the question as to what "expanding" it means?

As is only 31% of Democrats approve of it and that's the highest group.

I imagine the mandate is the primary reason, that not 1 out of 5 people like it and the mandate hasn't even taken effect yet.

[ProSense]

15. Here

from the December poll, people do not approve of the mandate:

[Uncle Joe]

18. That's what I thought,

thanks for providing the poll.

I believe if anything the mandate will become even less popular once it's enacted after the 2012 elections.

[SidDithers]

11. Keep trying...nt

Sid

[patrice]

12. Why? Because he's waiting to hear what the people want ACA to do: from PCORI

The Patient-Centered Outcomes Research Institute

http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/ezra-klein/post/interview-health-reforms-comparative-effectiveness-chief/2012/01/26/gIQAUiPdTQ_blog.html

New, Patient-Centered, Treatment-Effectiveness research underway: An interview with Joe Selby, executive director of the Patient Centered Outcomes Research Institute.

"Our mission is to provide useful information that is helpful to patients and their caregivers and clinicians in making medical care decisions. The key things we focus on are questions that patients and clinicians think are important. We want to involve them in the process of doing research and then disseminate information from that research. The novel part of what we were doing is taking substantial guidance from patients."

[patrice]

14. NOTE: the People =

1. patients
2. CAREGIVERS (emphasis added)
3. clinicians.

= Dialogue amongst health care insurance insurance market users ABOUT health care.

[patrice]

16. BTW, all, Senator Sanders predicted this in his recap of the ACA AFTER it passed & I have stated

that fact numerous times on this board, but there's a lot of PRETENDING going on around here regarding this particular issue. Why do you all think that is?

[Enrique]

17. I think Obama will talk about it

especially the fact that Romney enacted a very similar plan, even as Romney is posing as being against it.

[FarLeftFist]

22. He hasn't even started campaigning yet. I'm sure he will be all over it. He really has no choice.

[Better Believe It]

25. He hasn't? Right. Obama's on fact finding missions!

[Bobbie Jo]

27. Funny...

Variations of that RW taking point have been circulating the last several days.

See: Priebus, etc....

Go figure.

Adapted and Sanitized for your Convenience.

[FarLeftFist]

28. Trust me, you'll know when he's in campaign mode. The RW won't let you forget it.

[Motown_Johnny]

23. The problem here is that many want more reform than it provided

so that unfavorable number is not all people who don't want reform. Roughly one third of that number are people (such as myself) who want more reform.



When the poll asks the questions: This much reform or more v. Less reform or none, then I will pay attention.

[Better Believe It]

26. We don't need a reform of the private insurance industry. We need to end it!

With a single player Medicare for All public health care system.

[Vinca]

31. He's probably smart not to talk about it until after the Supremes make their decision.

If they uphold it, he can bring up all kinds of good things about it. If they toss it, he can run on what should have been done in the first place: Medicare for all.

[Life Long Dem]

34. Talk like this?

State of the Union Address

...

Obama: I will not go back to the days when health insurance companies had unchecked power to cancel your policy, deny your coverage, or charge women differently than men. (Applause.)

http://www.whitehouse.gov/the-press-office/2012/01/24/remarks-president-state-union-address

[Better Believe It]

36. They can't deny you coverage. But the insurance industry can demand outrageous fees ....

making it impossible for people to buy coverage.

Gee .... who would have thunk?

And right .... they can't "cancel" your insurance policy. Again, they can simply jack up the premiums making it impossible to continue your policy. Isn't that right?

Unless there is something in the Health Insurance Industry and Big Pharma Protection Act that curtails insurance policy premiums that I'm unfamiliar with.

[Life Long Dem]

38. Community rating.

Community rating is a concept usually associated with health insurance, which requires health insurance providers to offer health insurance policies within a given territory at the same price to all persons without medical underwriting, regardless of their health status.

Pure community rating prohibits insurance rate variations based on demographic characteristics such as age or gender, whereas adjusted or modified community rating allows insurance rate variations based on demographic characteristics such as age or gender.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Community_rating

Community rating comes from the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act

Guaranteed issue and partial community rating will require insurers to offer the same premium to all applicants of the same age and geographical location without regard to most pre-existing conditions (excluding tobacco use).

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Patient_Protection_and_Affordable_Care_Act

[Better Believe It]

40. So the insurance companies can still set just about whatever premium rates they want.

That's what I thought.

"adjusted or modified community rating allows insurance rate variations based on demographic characteristics such as age or gender."

Not only can they set their rates the insurance industry can reduce and change benefits provided.

Well, of course they can!

They play a major role in the for profit medical care industry.

And as long as that continues we will continue to be screwed by them.

Health care is a for profit private industry, not a universal health care service

[Life Long Dem]

41. Adjusted Community Rating (ACR) Definition

ACR is a group that is charged the same premium.

They can't charge a higher premium to any individual to cancel your insurance like you were saying, because the whole group would need to be dropped. Dropping the whole group by raising premiums would cost them.

adjusted community rating (ACR)

A rating method under which a health plan or MCO divides its members into classes or groups based on demographic factors such as geography, family composition, and age, and then charges all members of a class or group the same premium. The plan cannot consider the experience of a class, group, or tier in developing premium rates. Also known as modified community rating.

http://www.termwiki.com/EN:adjusted_community_rating_%28ACR%29

[bvar22]

35. If they think the health care "Reform" is a "negative" now,

...wait until 2014 when The Mandate kicks in,
and 40 - 70 MILLION (predicted uninsured by 2014) already hard pressed Working Class Americans are forced to BUY Junk "Bronze" Insurance.
Even with a "subsidy", most will STILL be forced to write a BIG check every year to a RICH Insurance Corporation
for a product that most won't be able use due to high Co-Pay/Deductibles.

Most of these Americans are NOT aware of what is coming in 2014.
When these MILLIONS find out,
they will NOT be happy.
They WILL Blame the Democrats,
and rightly so.

The smartest thing the Democrats did was to delay The Mandate until AFTER the 2012 elections,
because after The Mandate kicks in,
Democrats will be unelectable for a generation.

[girl gone mad]

37. Yes, that's what is so frightening.

And Democrats will have to own the misery.

Young people are already squeezed by student loan debt and a crap job market. Now they will be forced to buy a defective product which the vast majority of them will not derive any real benefit from.