Barack Obama is teaming up with his former VP to remind people of what the law has done — and what Donald Trump will try if he gets the chance.
It has been 14 years since then-President Barack Obama signed the Affordable Care Act, with Vice President Joe Biden at his side. It was one of that administration’s crowning achievements — or, as Biden said in a famous hot mic moment, a “big fucking deal.”
On Saturday, Biden and Obama plan to mark the anniversary with a virtual campaign event, as part of a broader effort to put the law at the center of Biden’s presidential reelection campaign. The idea is to remind voters about what the Affordable Care Act has accomplished ― and what could happen to it if Donald Trump retakes the White House.
There is a lot to say on both counts.
Tens of millions of Americans now get health insurance through the Affordable Care Act, either via expanded state Medicaid programs that the ACA funds or subsidized private coverage that the ACA makes available. Together, those features have brought the proportion of Americans without health insurance to historic lows.
The law also introduced legal guarantees of coverage for people with preexisting conditions. Those matter because, back in the day, insurance companies could charge higher premiums to people with diabetes or a history of cancer ― or deny them insurance altogether. They could also sell policies that left out whole swaths of coverage, like maternity care or treatment for mental illness.
Now with Trump on the ballot again, those changes could be in jeopardy ― for reasons that are right out in plain view, but aren’t getting the close look they deserve.
Anyone else remember when we compromised down to a more conservative version than the Republican candidate wanted, so Dems said we need to keep voting for them so they could keep improving it?
Joe Biden apparently doesn’t, even though he was right there in the White House.
Because Biden and the rest of the neoliberals just start screeching anytime someone says American healthcare is still fucked. The absolute most we can hope for from them is nothing getting worse while they’re in office. But that’s not a given.
Hell, 80+ years ago Social Security was supposed to be universal healthcare.
For almost longer than Biden has been alive moderates have been saying Americans need to wait just a little longer.
Anyone else remember what the Republicans did when Hillary Clinton proposed sweeping healthcare reform during her husband’s presidency? And how close they came to shooting down Obamacare entirely? There’s no valid “both sides” argument here, the gulf between the parties is as wide as the Bible Belt.
Yep.
Modern Dems are pretty much republicans from 20 years ago.
That’s exactly the problem with the standard for the only other option to republicans being “only 90% as bad as republicans”.
Republicans will keep getting worse.
But what elected office did Hillary hold back then?
Did she have any political power? Or was her saying that just a way to try and score points without any obligation to voters?
Like, that’s your best example:
80 fucking years that moderates and republicans have been stalling universal healthcare.
It’s never going to happen unless we replace both groups.