TOPSHOT – Voters cast their votes in the voting booths at the early voting location at the … [+]
My recent community conversations indicate that overall awareness of health care policy is lower in this presidential election than in previous elections. The economy and immigration threaten to grow, but we should not forget that health care is also coming into the spotlight. The outcome of this presidential election will determine the fate of a number of health care policies that will be decided during the next presidential term.
Last week someone told me that health care policy is not something he thinks about. When questioned, he said, “We need to go back to the days before Obamacare because health care was better then.” When I asked for a sample he didn’t have one. He is 19 years old and covered by his father’s health insurance. A few other conversations confirmed that, outside of abortion, people seem pretty disapproving when it comes to health care and don’t tie their voting decisions to health care policy.
In one recent episodethe Considerations Podcasta nonpartisan media organization that does not endorse policies or political candidates, highlighted three health care policy decisions the next president must make over the next four years.
Insurance premium support The Affordable Care Act The benefits of the legislation for Americans include, but are not limited to, requiring insurance companies to waive pre-existing conditions as a condition of eligibility, allowing children up to age 26 to be on their parents’ health insurance and expand access to insurance for Americans who cannot afford it by providing financial assistance for insurance premiums.
Some of this financial support for premiums, known as enhanced subsidies, will expire at the end of 2025. The next president will decide whether these subsidies will end. Data shows that ACA subsidy and insurance support have reduced the number of bankruptcies in some groups, indicating an economic benefit from the legislation.
Medication abortion Two-thirds of abortions in the US are done via medication rather than surgery. Access is determined by the Food and Drug Administration(FDA), and there is disagreement in Congress over whether the FDA should continue to approve access to abortion medications. Erderlina Coassociate professor of law at the University of the Pacific, says the next government will have the power to make decisions about the availability of medicines. “This will [depend on] or the FDA decides to revisit medication abortion, so who is in charge of that agency can make a difference.”
Medicare drug price negotiations The Centers for Medicaid and Medicare Services (CMS) now has the authority to negotiate lower drug prices with the pharmaceutical industry certain medications. However, there are Republicans who want to revoke CMS’s authority to do so. The next president will decide whether this authority continues and can be expanded beyond the first ten medications. This issue will impact millions of seniors, including those on Medicare. According to the Kaiser Family Foundation“Most seniors have prescription drug coverage through Medicare Part D, but the majority across all parties say drug costs are unreasonable.”
WASHINGTON, USA – JULY 25: US Senator John McCain (2nd from left) leaves the Capitol after his first … [+]
Also, Andrei Ostrovskyformer head of CMS’s medical division, says Donald Trump and some Republicans in Congress tried to cut Medicaid costs by 20% during his tenure. Thanks to the expansion of Medicaid, more than 20 million Americans, who would otherwise be uninsured, have been able to obtain health insurance. Since the inception of ACA, despite its growing popularity and now 45 million Americans are covered by the ACA, Congress has made 70 attempts to destroy the law.
In another interview with Tradeoffs Podcast: Larry LeavittExecutive Vice President for Health Policy at the Kaiser Family Foundation, says, “If Republicans win this election, I think the ACA along with Medicaid will have big targets on their backs. If Democrats can keep one house in Congress, I think the ACA will be safe, even though it hasn’t been a big issue in this election.”
These coming health policy decisions could also have serious consequences for Americans who serve as caregivers to parents, grandparents, and other loved ones. An approximate one 38 million Americans provide unpaid care services to loved ones at an estimated cost of $600 billion per year.
Despite limited debate and coverage of health care policy in this election, health care is on the ballot. Like the 19-year-old young man, some people believe that if they are “healthy,” they assume they are unaffected by health care policy. That may be true for him this immediately, but that doesn’t apply to hundreds of millions of Americans.
Before all Americans head to the polls, it would be wise to think and review the information needed to make decisions about which health care policies will best support the health care needs of their loved ones and themselves.