With Health Law Cemented, G.O.P. Debates Next Move
By Jonathan Weisman
The New York Times, December 26, 2013
Senator Kelly Ayotte, Republican of New Hampshire, said she was teaming up with Democrats on a host of incremental changes to the law, such as expanding health savings accounts and repealing a tax on medical devices. And other Republicans are wondering aloud how long they can keep up the single-minded tactic of highlighting what is wrong with the law without saying what they would do about the problems it was supposed to address.
http://www.nytimes.com/2013/12/27/us/politics/as-health-law-cements-its-place-gop-ponders-how-to-attack.html?ref=politics&pagewanted=all
Comment
By Don McCanne, M.D.
Democrats want to repair some of the defects in the Affordable Care Act. Republicans want to include some of their favorite proposals such as expansions of health savings accounts and catastrophic plans, and loosening restrictions on sale of insurance products across state lines. Members of both parties wish to curry the favor of the voters before the November elections. This is a setup for mediocre incrementalism when what we really need isā¦ well, the most popular NYT reader response (out of 475 at moment) says it well:
Atikin – North Carolina
The only logical solution: single-payer.