The Real Death Panel?
(Photo: Beach Peanuts)
While the Supreme Court continued hearing arguments on the Affordable Care Act this morning, Think Progress mapped out the disaster that will result if the conservatives get their way and the ACA is thrown out entirely. Given that the Court, in my opinion, is now a political and partisan one it was never intended to be, it isn't hard to imagine that the conservative majority will do just that.
Recall the Florida 2000 election.
Recall Citizens United.
Recall the commingled special interests, lobbyists and conservative justices, including Clarence Thomas and his wife's involvement with the cause of killing health care, among other conflicts.
Does anyone really think this will be any different? I don't. I sincerely hope I'm wrong.
From Think Progress:
If they ultimately decide to throw out the entire law, however, the result will be bedlam. Much of the Affordable Care Act has already taken effect, and cannot simply be stopped on a dime tomorrow:
- Stripping Young People of Care: At least 2.5 million young people now have insurance because of the Affordable Care Act. All of them would be cast back into the wilderness if the whole law were struck down
- Blowing Up Medicare: Approximately 100 million Medicare claims are processed each month using a formula that was altered by the Affordable Care Act. If the entire law were struck down, new rates could not be calculated under the old, pre-ACA formula until after a rulemaking process that can take months before is completed. The result would be massive delays in payments to health providers throughout the country.
- Pulling The Rug Out On Retirees: The Affordable Care Act also provides thousands of Americans the opportunity to retire early and still remain insured until they become eligible for Medicare. Striking down the entire law could yank insurance away from many near-elderly Americans who retired solely because of the promise that the Affordable Care Act would be there for them.
- Ungrateful States: Many of the states that are currently challenging the law have nonetheless accepted millions of dollars worth of grants under the Affordable Care Act. If the law is struck down, it’s likely that this money would need to be returned immediately, further stressing already tight state budgets.
And then there's the fact that people will die.
For all their scare tactics about "death panels," the true death panels; the Republicans, are now bare for all to see, and that won't be forgotten anytime soon.
If the ACA goes, the conservatives will own this nightmare.
