Can you help me debunk some "Obamacare" propaganda?

[garybeck]

Last edited Tue Mar 20, 2012, 04:17 PM - Edit history (2)

I admittedly do not understand all the ins and outs of the Affordable Healthcare Act. But last night I posted that Bill Maher visual on my facebook wall.



I then got in a debate with a tea partier about health care. He said that " It all ready casued 25% of the poeple to lose there current insurance and force up cost $2400"

Before going on the attack, I googled a bit to get my facts straight. I found there actually is a CBO report (http://www.cbo.gov/publication/43082) that indicates that millions of people will lose their coverage they currently get from their employer.

After reading the report summary I learned that the CBO does estimate that some employers will terminate their coverage for low wage earners, and the numbers could be in the millions. However it seems to indicate that these people won't be without coverage at that point, because medicaid is being expanded and there will be subsidies for low wage earners to purchase health care through the health care exchanges which will bring costs down. Bottom line seems to be, these people who lose their coverage through their employer (along with the very high monthly premiums and, copays, and deductables) but they will end up with cheaper (and possibly better) coverage through other means.

In effect it's misrepresenting the facts to say that millions of people will lose their health care coverage because of the law. they may no longer get it from their employer and that's not necessarily a bad thing.

Am I on the right track? Anything else I can throw into the debate?

on edit, this is my repsonse to him on FB:

Chuck that is an outright lie. Get your facts straight. the Affordable Health Care Act has not caused 25% of the people to lose their insurance. Where do you get your information, out of Rush Limbaugh's butt? If you're talking about the CBO report, it estimates that "a small number" employers will drop coverage for lower wage employees. That is in the FUTURE, not "already" as you said. Furthermore, these people will not be without insurance at that point, because Medicare is being expanded, and there will be subsidies for low wage earners and health care exchanges to bring costs down. This is clearly covered in the nonpartisan CBO report . And this is all a GOOD thing because low wage earners are already struggling to afford the insurance offered by their employers, because the monthly premiums, co-pays, and deducatables are so expensive they can't afford it.

Chuck I believe in free speech but posting blatant lies on my facebook page is counter-productive.

[louis-t]

1. You're arguing with a person that spells THAT badly?

[Lawlbringer]

2. +1

haha

[garybeck]

3. yes, he's an old friend and he blames his spelling on dyslexia

and he constantly chimes in right wing propaganda on nearly every political thing I post on facebook. many of my friends are sick of it and have "unfriended" him long ago. I keep him on there and try to disprove his bullshit when I can, in a public way. I guess there's a part of me that hopes he will turn away from the dark side someday if I keep showing him how nearly everything he says is incorrect.

[arcane1]

4. First, nowhere in your link does it say "millions"

It says "a small reduction in employment-based health insurance"

Second, if your friend has a claim to make, the burden is on him to prove his claim, not on you to disprove it.

[garybeck]

5. on the full PDF report it says

In the four alternative scenarios discussed below, the ACA changes the number of
people who will obtain health insurance coverage through their employer in 2019
by an amount that ranges from a reduction of 20 million to a gain of 3 million
relative to what would have occurred otherwise.

(bottom of page 2)

[arcane1]

7. Ah ok, thanks :)

[TheKentuckian]

6. It is my hope that every employer in the nation drops coverage.

The employer based system is a loser for us and really distorts the reform effort into fascism as designed by the Heritage Foundation, Gingrich, Dole, Rmoney, and the insurance cartel planned.