Medicaid

For decades, Democrats have said Republicans are heartless. Statistics show that conservatives are some of the most charitable people in the country. Yet they can sometimes appear heartless when it comes to such things as Medicaid.

The conflict between small government and Medicaid is clear, but at this time, there is no alternative. Presidential candidate Donald Trump came under attack after saying he was for cutting government, but he wouldn't let people die in the street. That means he has no current plan to cut or reduce Medicaid other than the forced expansion found in the Affordable Care Act. The ACA tried to force states to expand Medicaid programs with little to no financial backing.

CBO And Other Spin

While listening to all the spin about the CBO report on people leaving their jobs voluntarily due to the availability of insurance. I must say that conservatives have taken the wrong road on this topic. During my 33 years of working I met many people who had after hours businesses of their own and worked the hourly job only for the insurance.

I have also known people that would have retired early had it not been for insurance. People who have lived a thrifty life have set in place everything they need to exist outside a steady job. Some like myself chose this path in order pursue their dreams. I know of others who would, and have left to live off the meager income of their hobbies.

This doesn't justify federally subsidized insurance. This in no way defends any part of the ACA. But if it is the law and will potentially offer subsidized insurance, we must stick only to the facts. I believe in this case the democrats are correctly stating that some of those in the categories I mentioned above will leave their current jobs. This also doesn't mean they will stop working for others. They may simply work part time.

Healthcare: A Republican Alternative

Healthcare is the topic of today. It's likely to remain that way for some time to come. We are learning more and more about the Affordable Care Act, aka Obamacare, while we know little about Republican alternatives. Some question if Republicans have an alternative.

There are some Republican alternatives which range from lifetime health savings accounts to simply letting the free market take over. As long as we have Medicare and other federal insurances we will never have a free market in healthcare, for that reason simply leaving it to the free market isn't a plan. Federal health insurance mandates guidelines for treatment. Medicare is a topic unto itself.

For now let's talk about an answer for when Republicans are ask what do they suggest other than Obamacare and Medicare. People won't settle for broad replies that point to no clear plan. How should a Republican deal with healthcare? The first step would be to remove the federal government from the loop. If we leave such things as Medicare or Medicaid solely to the state that at least removes federal involvement. Even state run insurance leaves some free market because there is competition among the states.