At Last, a Promising New Health Care Idea for Democrats

Health care policy debate between major parties is largely backward-looking, with Republicans still reacting to the Affordable Care Act and some privately favoring major reductions to Medicare and Medicaid. Republican proposals often imply a return to self-reliance and cash-based care for infrequent medical visits. Democrats often focus on preventing cuts or changes to Medicare, Medicaid, and Obamacare, and some support Medicare For All as a values test rather than an imminent legislative plan. Medicare For All also does not address broader health system problems beyond private insurance. A Democratic think tank promotes universal free primary care delivered through ACA marketplaces and expanded preventive services or through a new public option called the American Health Gateway.

"Sixteeen years after the enactment of the Affordable Care Act, Republicans are still filled with rage by Obamacare. Some of them, in fact, would privately love to get rid of or radically shrink Medicare and Medicaid. As for the GOP's "positive" health care proposals, it's hard to avoid the impression that Republicans yearn to go back to the days when people took care of themselves and their extended families, paid cash for rare trips to the doctor's office or the ER, and maybe put aside some money for a really rainy day-like, well, the day you get a cancer diagnosis."

"Most Democrats mainly focus on fighting cuts or other changes to Medicare, Medicaid, and Obamacare, which is understandable given the GOP's bad-faith approach to all these life-saving programs. Many who are inclined to think bigger or better often endorse Medicare For All or some other variation on single-payer health care. Given fiscal and political realities, the single-payer panacea is more of a statement of values and a way to meet a progressive litmus test than something anyone expects to enact in the near future."

"Medicare For All also doesn't address problems in the health care system other than those involving private insurance. So merits aside, it's refreshing to see a Democratic think tank promote a new and someone different health policy idea: free primary care for all, as NBC News reports:"

"Searchlight Institute senior fellow David Bowen, a former Senate aide who helped craft the Affordable Care Act, said [free primary care] would be delivered either through that law's marketplaces, expanding on the preventive services mandate, or through a new "public option" that the group is calling the "American Health Gateway....""

Read at Intelligencer