Too many rural Americans have no health insurance and they deserve better | Opinion

The GOP has taken over the U.S. House.

In rural Tennessee, 16% of Tennesseans 18-64 are uninsured, having no healthcare coverage

So, what can we expect from them regarding healthcare, a major issue for this county? From their own policy statements- nothing, as I point out below.

The French health care system, widely agreed to be the best in the world, is basically universal Medicare, with supplemental insurance for dental, vision, and so forth.

The French system costs less than half per capita ($5,564) what ours does ($11,945). Plus, the French people are relatively happy with their health care system whereas we are not.

But here, leadership didn't have the power that lobbyists’ money has had over conservative Democrats/independents needed to unilaterally pass something similar.

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Republicans do not have an alternative for Obamacare

With the change in House, things will only get worse.

The Republican party opposes real healthcare reform although in 2000, Donald Trump once said he endorsed a single-payer system, which similar to Medicare for All.

When Obama proposed healthcare reform in 2008, I correctly predicted it would pass Congress but be inadequate.

Democrats  received no GOP support.

So, they passed something (the ACA, Obamacare), claimed victory, and blamed Republicans for inaction. Single payer would have been a better solution, covering everyone. But GOP support would have been required, as was true when Medicare was passed in the 60s. So, Medicare for All was not proposed by Obama.

A single-payer health care system will never be seriously considered by what  a center-right Senate (conservative Republicans, Democrats, independents) and a GOP controlled House.

Under Obamacare, 35 million people have gotten insurance. But 34% of working age adults still have inadequate insurance.

And 30 million Americans (11%) have no coverage at all.

That includes many people those in 11 GOP-controlled states like Tennessee that decided not to expand Medicaid- even though the Feds pay for 90% of the cost.

Tennessee ranks among the 15 worst states in the U.S. regarding the rate of uninsured in nonmetro areas (16.3%).

And the for-profit insurance companies will continue to find loopholes to lower their risk through eliminating sicker patients and overcharging the government via Medicare Advantage for seniors. That's how they make money and pay those seven-figure salaries to their CEOs.

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Health care reform will benefit Democrats in 2024

Let's go back to the GOP, which has proposed no real reforms in many decades. The new House is concentrating on investigating Hunter Biden versus improving healthcare.

For example, here’s what the newly released GOP “Commitment to America” plan states on healthcare:

• Achieve Longer, Healthier Lives for Americans

• Personalize care to provide affordable options and better quality, delivered by trusted doctors

• Lower prices through transparency, choice, and competition, invest in lifesaving cures, and improve access to telemedicine.

In other words, the GOP provides incomprehensible gobbledygook. American voters should realize they advocate doing nothing.

The American public knows that major healthcare reform is needed. And that the Democrats are the only party with any viable ideas. Like it or not, healthcare reform (including cost control) is good for the country. And the GOP must eventually endorse a greater role for government in health insurance. Otherwise, health care will continue to be used as a stick against them in elections, just like the Republicans use culture war values issues like “religious liberty” against the Democrats.

The bottom line is that by opposing true reform now, the Republican Party loses more broadly over the long term. The only question is when will the Democrats refine their messaging to adequately explain and push this vital issue in upcoming 2024 elections in Tennessee and the U.S.

Jack Bernard was the first director of health planning for Georgia. As a corporate executive with health care corporations, he did planning and/or cost containment for many hospitals in Tennessee.

This article originally appeared on Nashville Tennessean: Too many rural Americans lack health insurance and they deserve better