The ACA and Health Care Costs

We've heard a lot about the fact that the federal website for purchasing health care wasn't working well.  We know that Obama had said that if you are happy with your policy you can keep it, but it turns out the ACA requires insurance companies to meet certain standards.  So if you previously had some sort of rip off policy that may have been cancelled.  So this means Obama lied.  My sense is that these stories have been covered a lot.

What's been covered less is some of the stuff that Paul Krugman discusses related to costs.  So far, as I've discussed previously, the ACA looks to be doing what it was designed to do.  Reign in our out of control and unsustainable cost problem.  This is leading to other positive results not often discussed.  A lot of people don't know that our deficit is falling faster than it has fallen in 60 years.  I told a conservative friend that after he complained about government spending recently.  He just didn't believe me.

Fox News has dished up several stories from people that have been harmed by Obama Care.  Turns out those stories are simply bogus.  Here's one example.  But my sense is that there are a lot of stories on the flip side.  People that previously had no real options.  Living with bumps under their skin, rashes, and just unable to do anything about it in this, the richest country in the world.  Take a look at this interesting story about poor people in Kentucky finally getting some access to health services.

So costs coming down, touching stories of people with no options finally getting some options, a deficit that's falling fast.  This is what the Republicans shut the government down to prevent.  This is what prompted them to finally go nuclear.

They're not wrong to go nuclear.  They know where this leads.  Healthier people, smaller deficits, lower costs.  Their credibility will take a pounding, and that's what matters most, not the lives of real people.