Unless we are going to, as a society, agree that people who don't pay don't get treated for disease, then it is a cost-forcing scheme whichever path is chosen.
Before the ACA those that paid for insurance were forced to shoulder the cost of those that didn't. Now, those who think they don't want to pay for health insurance are forced to pay one way or another (though I think the penalty is too small).
I find it hard to feel bad for people that don't want to pay for their own health risk or who think they don't have any.
I lean heavily towards the libertarian side of things, but it didn't take that long for me to come to the conclusion that unless "we" (as a society) were going to let people die in the streets from curable diseases, we are all going to pay for everyone's health insurance, in some way/shape/form anyway.
I still believe a more open market would be a "better" solution, with a tight safety net to maintain standards across economic levels, but as that is unlikely, fixing the glaring issues with the ACA seems like a good starting point.
There is no reason we can't pursue both simultaneously. Nothing in the ACA prevents posting of price lists or incentivizing patients with cash payouts for finding cheaper than average care.
That is what has driven me crazy about politics -- it is more about making noise about the other side than actually doing something that might push things forward. Republicans could have pushed open market reforms the moment ACA was passed. If they did it on a state by state level they could even point to data of success vs pure ACA states to bolster their agenda.
Trump seems to think it will lead to the ACA falling apart. He might be right but only as part of the entire current insurance system falling apart around it. I really don't know what the intention was, there. As simple as fulfilling a campaign promise no matter the cost?
The issue is that based on the reasoning that people who were paying for insurance before were already bearing the costs. If that’s the case then it doesn’t make much sense for those same people to see dramatic cost increases.
Before the ACA those that paid for insurance were forced to shoulder the cost of those that didn't. Now, those who think they don't want to pay for health insurance are forced to pay one way or another (though I think the penalty is too small).
I find it hard to feel bad for people that don't want to pay for their own health risk or who think they don't have any.