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Comment by maxxxxx | Hacker News Reader

Whatever they will be doing will end like Obamacare. There may be some changes around the edges but the fundamental problems of US healthcare won’t even be touched. The incumbents are way too entrenched and their propaganda is very successful with a lot of citizens.

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US forced insurance seems like part of the problem. From the article, the response to "when did drug prices ratchet ups" was "when prescription drug coverage became part of Medicare"

This singular problem point was completely ignored by the rest of the article and in the proposed solutions.

It seems like no matter what drug companies charge, our government MUST pay it. And citizens not covered by the government MUST buy health insurance. The ACA says it is illegal for you not to buy coverage; if you don't there is a fine. If you to not pay this fine (individual responsibility tax), you go to jail.

The case of Nelene Fox shows that HMOs MUST pay for anything, even unreasonable procedures for terminally ill patients.

How can the market function when you MUST PAY?

The ban on Medicare negotiating drug prices was a nice giveaway for the companies by the Bush administration. But this can be changed anytime if the is political will.

Lot of incumbent democrats lost their seats in 2010 after voting for Obamacare.

Don't have the data, but I'm willing to bet part of the reason is probably because a lot of people that didn't have an insurance plan before Obamacare now were forced to lest they pay the penalty; that's all the ACA really is anyway: a glorified mandate saying one had to pick private insurance from the government's limited marketplace or they'll be fined. Didn't solve dick...but hey, Obama did it so it must be progress!

The change how preexisting conditions are handled was huge. Before Obamacare it was really hard to get and keep health insurance for people with chronic conditions. Unfortunately it seems the current administration wants to go back to these “glory days”

As opposed to the way it was before where if you didn’t have insurance , you could go to the emergency room and they still had to treat you?

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