With a year of implementation under its belt, Obamacare has encountered some successes with its implementation and faced some challenges. The health care law certainly has its supporters and its critics and it continues to be a hot-button topic in the world of American politics. Let’s take a look at some of the unbiased pros and cons that have been seen with this new emphasis on providing health insurance to every America to determine if there are ways the law could be improved.
The Pros of Obamacare
It Provides Better Access To Healthcare Coverage
Many households, especially those who have self-employed workers in them, were choosing to not have healthcare because of the immense costs that were required. Some families had to pay $1,000 per month for basic coverages. Because the insurance industry has been changed to a group focus instead of an individual one, those who qualify for the exchanges can have better rates or better coverage.
It Allows For Better Child Care Coverage
Many parents were choosing to skip doctor appointments for vaccines and other well-child needs because they couldn’t afford to go. With Obamacare in place, many of the preventative care options that are often necessary for good health became available at a reduced cost, if not completely free.
It Still Provides Choices
With the exchanges, people can choose the right amount of health insurance that is works for them. Tiered programs are available so that better coverage can be obtained and subsidies are in place for those who don’t make a lot of money, but want to have some level of comprehensive health insurance.
The Cons of Obamacare
It Takes Longer To See Your Family Doctor
Some communities are seeing wait times of up to 6 months in order to see a doctor for routine needs. This has forced many families to spend more overall on their healthcare because they are forced to go to urgent or walk-in clinics to get treated for infections, sore throats, and common needs that the family doctor used to address before Obamacare.
There Are Big Price Differences
People in certain parts of the United States may pay over $200 per month more for the exact same health insurance as others. It isn’t because they don’t have the same good health. It is because the regions were evaluated for risk and higher risk regions were given higher premiums to pay, no matter what the actual health of an applicant on the exchanges might be.
It Is A Choice That Is Forced Upon People
Health insurance has become mandatory. You either pay for a health insurance plan, get subsidized for one if you have lower income levels, or pay a tax that increases in tiers year after year. The GAO estimated that employers would raise income levels to compensate for the lower benefits and extra savings that a transition to Obamacare would bring, but that hasn’t happened either. It is not uncommon for households to be paying up to $6,000 more for less health insurance.
There are some definite benefits that have been seen with the first year of Obamacare and there are some things that need to be changed. By weighing the pros and cons of them all in an unbiased fashion, we can work together to create the change that is needed.
