Health and Human Services (HHS) Secretary nominee Robert F. Kennedy Jr. was able to embarrass “chuckling” Democrats during his Senate confirmation hearing by using their hypocrisy against them.
Senate Democrats “chuckled” at Kennedy’s claim that most Americans prefer to be enrolled in private insurance. “Americans don’t, by and large, do not like the Affordable Care Act” he stated, arguing that billions of dollars given to Medicaid have not made Americans healthier.
“People are on it, they don’t like Medicaid, they like Medicare. And they like private insurance. We need to listen to people, they would prefer to be on private insurance, most Americans if they can afford to be, will be on private insurance” he stated.
As he continued, Democrats startling getting restless. “We need to figure out ways to improve care, particularly for [the] elderly, for veterans, for the poor in this country.” As Kennedy heard the rude chuckles, he shot back: “And the current model [of Medicaid] is not doing that. Ask any of the Democrats who are chuckling just now, do you think all that money, that $900 billion we’re sending to Medicaid every year is making Americans healthy? Do we think it’s working for anybody? Are the premiums low enough?”
The Daily Caller News Foundation points out:
Though former President Barack Obama promised that the Affordable Care Act would reduce the cost of premiums by $2,500 annually, the average American family’s health insurance premiums more than doubled from $244 per month to $558 between 2013 and 2019, according to the Heritage Foundation. Supporters at the time suggested that the legislation would help resolve infant mortality, though the rate only witnessed modest declines.
The main problem I have seen is the deductible levels. Do you think that a $5k -$10k family deductible is affordable ?