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Won't get fooled again

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Senate Leader John Thune with House Speaker Mike Johnson discussing healthcare.

The Little Leprechaun from Louisiana has done it again. After being told by the 8 Democrats who voted for the funding bill in November that Republicans would put forward a health care funding bill before Christmas, Mike Johnson said no. Gee, why didn't I see this coming?

You'd think by this point that Dems would realize that their GOP counterparts don't play fair, yet here was Sen. Fudderman of Pennsylvania telling Chrissy Cuomo that he can still deliver it. Good luck with that Johnny.

Republican leaders are banking on this being a non-issue in the midterms despite rumblings within their own party that this could kill them in the upcoming Congressional elections. Yet, Johnson and Thune just see this as a way to kill "Obamacare" once and for all. Don't forget their party voted more than 70 times to repeal the Affordable Care Act between 2010 and 2017. For more than a decade they've been telling us how they have a better plan but it has yet to materialize.

With millions set to lose health insurance under the ACA, with Fuddy admitting at least 400,000 in his home state of Pennsylvania, that's a pretty bold move. People have gotten used to the federal and state-sponsored insurance marketplaces. Nearly 50 million persons are enrolled but for many the only way they can afford it is through federal subsidies. That's roughly 15% of the total population of the US. Take away the subsidies and you pull the rug out from under ACA, not to mention have a lot of angry voters!

I never really understand why Republicans are so adamantly opposed to health care. It's not just the ACA but also Medicaid and Medicare they want to kill. They seem to think anyone can get treatment if they go through the emergency care unit, oblivious to the massive price tag that comes with it. No other country in the world has a higher personal bankruptcy rate than the US, and this is largely due to persons no longer being able to cover their medical bills.

It's just sick! Especially when Republicans try to claim that the reason for these absurdly high medical bills is people suing hospitals for malpractice. It is estimated there is somewhere between 200,000 and 400,000 accidental or preventable deaths in US hospitals per year.  Not the safest place to be.

Our health care system is already dysfunctional, yet we have persons like RFK Jr., Dr. Oz and other MAHA cultists calling the shots in Washington.   It's a clear and present danger to our society, but there is nothing this Congress will do about it. So, it is time to give them the bum's rush! And that includes Democrats like Fudderman, who refused to press Republicans into adding health care funding to that spending bill in November, but rather believed they could somehow get another spending bill passed before the end of the year.

I'm so glad I live in Europe. When it comes to health care, European countries at least provide basic services to all citizens and foreigners. You pay your taxes and you get full coverage. I can't describe how much it eases my mind to know I can go to the hospital after slipping on the ice and not get a $10,000 bill the next day. 

Americans need to wake up and demand universal healthcare, not wait until they are disabled or 65 to receive Medicaid and Medicare. It is time for Democrats to hold Republicans accountable, not keep letting them off the hook as Fuddy is doing.

Comments

  1. James FergusonDecember 19, 2025 at 9:49 AM

    Since posting this commentary, I see four Republicans joined Democrats to force a vote on ACA subsidies but the vote probably won't be scheduled to early next year. By then it may be too late. The cynicism of the Republicans never ceases to appall me.

    https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c7417092vpvo

    ReplyDelete

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