While GOP works to repeal, Democrats say they have a plan to fix Obamacare
Jul 20, 2017, 4:58 AM
As Republicans struggle to repeal and possibly replace the Affordable Care Act known as Obamacare, Democrats say they have a plan to fix it.
“We do have some ideas that are bipartisan fix proposals, to fix the parts of the law that aren’t working,” said U.S. Rep. Kyrsten Sinema (D-Ariz.). “But also protect the parts of the law that are very successful.”
Sinema said one example that’s working is the Medicaid Expansion, which some 400,000 Arizonans now depend on.
Here’s what Sinema said needs fixing.
“The worst part of Obamacare is the exchange,” she said. “Arizona’s actually had the highest premium increases of any state this year. We had 116 percent premium increases.”
And because of the cost of doing business in the exchange in Arizona, the state is down to just two insurers.
“The reason most of the companies pulled out of the exchange was because it just wasn’t cost effective to provide the care,” Sinema said.
Her plan would require the administration to pay the cost sharing reductions. That essentially helps subsidize the unpaid cost for high-cost individuals who are on the exchanges.
“We’ve got to put more money into a reinsurance fund, and we’ve to pay for this cost sharing,” Sinema said.
Other Democrat ideas include repealing health care tax, expanding tax credit subsidies and more.
