Website glitches. Losing your doctor. Increasing deductibles and premiums. Enrollment rates only about half of what was promised. Preferred One pulling out. Blue Cross Blue Shield dropping more than 100,000 plans. Aetna cancelling planned expansions and reconsidering its involvement in any exchange.
Obamacare has been marred with errors and failures since its inception, but these most recent issues may be some of the biggest blows to this horrendous law, and more importantly Minnesotans, yet.
The departure of Minnesota’s largest health insurer — Blue Cross Blue Shield — should serve as a watershed moment.
It’s time to stop simply wishing we could go back in time and stop Obamacare.
It’s also time to stop ignoring the major problems happening in health care right now that reduce competition, lead to higher costs, and lower access to care.
Most Americans recognize we are not headed down the right path. In an industry where Minnesota is a world-wide leader through new and innovative solutions, the federal government has decreed to all states that enormous changes will affect our health care system.
As a result, private companies are experiencing staggering losses. St. Cloud Medical Group, which provides primary care to several cities throughout Minnesota’s Sixth Congressional District, has experienced a 30 percent decrease in pay for their doctors compared to the average for each specialty. Just two years ago they ranked 8th out of 132 medical groups in cost of care per patient.
Recently, Blue Cross Blue Shield of Minnesota claimed a $265 million loss on the individual market, which includes MNsure, forcing them to drop individual plans. These issues, error prone signups, and the out-of-control rising premiums are now commonplace, not just within Minnesota, but in every state throughout the country.
In addition to the failures of the law itself, President Obama, Nancy Pelosi and Harry Reid have all failed to even acknowledge that the law has its issues, let alone try to come up with solutions.
It is not enough to complain.
I have voted to repeal Obamacare several times. But Members of Congress — or any elected official — cannot simply be against ideas. The American people are tired of the bickering between parties and the unwillingness to cooperate. We need creative ideas and alternatives. Republicans and Democrats need to work together to find solutions with health care leaders, and most importantly with the American people at the table.
One idea is to empower the patient to decide their doctor, their coverage, and where their health care dollars are spent. Insurance companies and doctors currently negotiate your level of care. What if they dealt directly with you?
Instead of incentivizing young and healthy individuals to avoid insurance altogether, we should remove requirements that base premium costs on age and cap costs for older Americans when they dramatically exceed what young and healthy individuals pay.
Instead of flushing the individual market free of quality care, we could let small businesses and individuals cooperate, driving down their costs and increasing their negotiating power.
Hundreds of ideas like these exist. That’s why the House of Representatives will renew their efforts to consider them and several others in the coming weeks. I am committed to working with anyone willing to offer fresh and sensible ideas. Now is the time to work together, regardless of political party. There truly is a #BetterWay.
We all have our opinions on how we got into this hole — now is the time to work together to get out.
