DEMS ONLY: Was Obamacare worth it?

[henster]

All the political ramifications considered and the prospects of losing the Senate next year do you think the law was worth the political capital used and the resulting losses of the House.

[NewYorkExpress]

It wasn't worth it then, but it is worth it now...

[SWE]

If we're going to invest all of our political capital in a health care bill, it should at least have a public option.

[Snowstalker Mk. II]

As a technical Democrat (because closed primaries), not remotely.

[Marokai Backbeat]

Millions more people will get health care because of it. Yes, it was worth it.

[henster]

Losing the House for a decade was absolutely not worth any kind of legislation especially this considering 5 years later there are still no political benefits of the law. A lot of candidates are running away from it rather than running on it. Right now it's a liability for everyone who voted for it and is just fodder for the GOP. We could've done a much smaller and simpler reform with a Medicaid expansion and some guaranteed benefits.

[NewYorkExpress]

Losing the House for a decade was absolutely not worth any kind of legislation especially this considering 5 years later there are still no political benefits of the law. A lot of candidates are running away from it rather than running on it. Right now it's a liability for everyone who voted for it and is just fodder for the GOP. We could've done a much smaller and simpler reform with a Medicaid expansion and some guaranteed benefits.

You realize the GOP would have opposed that just as vehemently... last I checked Republicans oppose health care... it hurts business.

[henster]

Millions more people will get health care because of it. Yes, it was worth it.

It could easily be taken away it's so unpopular I doubt it'll survive long after Obama is gone. Medicare/Social Security were so popular they survived long after they created but I doubt many people would mind if this whole law just went away...

[henster]

I feel like we'd be in a better place if we focused solely on the economy 2009-2010 and had Obama deal with HCR in his second term.

[Dave from Michigan]

Yes it was,  2010 would have been a bad year for the Democrats regardless. Republican would have most likely opposed any Democratic plan.

[TNF]

Nope (normal)

[Mechaman]

If we're going to invest all of our political capital in a health care bill, it should at least have a public option.

This is the only logical answer.

[The world will shine with light in our nightmare]

I think it speaks volumes to the inefficiency of our political system that, even with all that momentum and political capital, the ACA is all progressives could get.  It was the first time in over a decade that the dream of universal health care could be more than such, and there was more energy for reform than there ever was when the Clintons tried pursuing it.  The ACA, unfortunately, was the ceiling - you literally could not ask for more because the final product had to be compromised and compromised and compromised, nearly to death, until it could muster enough support to block a filibuster and pass the House by only a handful of votes.  If it weren't the ACA, it would have been nothing, and the Democrats would have had to enter the midterms (which probably would have been just as, if not more, brutal) with nothing on their resume but a failure to gain consensus within their own ranks on a major issue, just like they couldn't do in '94.

So, yes, Obamacare was worth it.  Millions of Americans will get covered and I'm confident it will be better than the old system, even if we're still left with gaps.

[Frodo]

Yes, definitely, as we now have a starting point for further improvements.  The best-case scenario (if we can get there) is that the ACA would gradually evolve over the coming years and decades into a full-fledged Bismarck system on par with Germany and Switzerland.  And we should certainly do all we can to make that happen.    

Single-payer, however, is a bridge too far for us -and those advocating it should consider moving to a country that has it because we almost certainly never will.   Ours is too conservative a society with too much suspicion and distrust of government for such a system.    

[7,052,770]

Yes, because Obamacare is objectively a good policy.  Obama's done a terrible job of selling it so far, but soon he won't have to anymore -- it will be apparent to all but the blindest partisans.

The GOP will regret branding it "Obamacare" when they could have semi-validly claimed Obamacare's successes for themselves, with it being based on Romney's health care plan.

[Beet]

Millions more people will get health care because of it. Yes, it was worth it.

This. And I'm not even sure it'll be the last word on health care policy, but someone needed to smash a battering ram through the status quo. Now the issue though is that we need to get as many uninsured as possible who want to sign up, signed up, and we're falling behind on this.

[Lief 🗽]

ITT: well-off "liberals" and "progressives" arguing that millions of poor people getting healthcare isn't worth it because reasons

[Snowstalker Mk. II]

ITT: well-off "liberals" and "progressives" arguing that millions of poor people getting healthcare isn't worth it because reasons

Unimportant if "getting healthcare" means being forced into the private and parasitic health insurance system. Socialized medicine or bust.

[Lief 🗽]

ITT: well-off "liberals" and "progressives" arguing that millions of poor people getting healthcare isn't worth it because reasons

Unimportant if "getting healthcare" means being forced into the private and parasitic health insurance system. Socialized medicine or bust.

No, contrary to the opinions of Marxist personas on the internet, getting healthcare is very important to the millions of real people who now have it thanks to Obamacare.

[H. Ross Peron]

Better than nothing

[Fmr President & Senator Polnut]

Yes, because it's a necessary first step. It's never a bad thing to give more people access to the system.

And the ACA will survive the Obama presidency, count on it.

[Marnetmar]

Accidentally voted no, but millions of people do have healthcare now who didn't in the past, which is worth it even if the ACA is incredibly flawed.

[Flake]

Millions more people will get health care because of it. Yes, it was worth it.

[Kaine for Senate '18]

Millions more people will get health care because of it. Yes, it was worth it.

[Oakvale]

Yes, obviously (not a sociopath who thinks laws exist only to score political points).

I feel like we'd be in a better place if we focused solely on the economy 2009-2010 and had Obama deal with HCR in his second term.

yea I'm sure the Republican House would be open to passing True Leftist healthcare or whatever