Joe Biden is in a tough political spot, one faced by virtually all former vice presidents running for the presidency. He has to differentiate himself from his former presidential boss, Barack Obama, and the boss’s policies while not giving the impression he’s throwing the still-popular boss under the bus.
Hence, Biden’s health care plan, which might be described as Obamacare on steroids. Or better yet, Obamacare on opioids—because the plan is intended to make the public even more dependent on government-run health care.
Obama pushed through the Affordable Care Act in 2010 with nothing but praise from Biden at the time.
Many believe that Democrats knew Obamacare wouldn’t work and only passed it to create more support for full-blown socialized medicine—i.e., now euphemistically referred to as Medicare for All.
While many Democrats had openly admitted they wanted a single-payer health care system, I continue to believe that most of them genuinely thought Obamacare would work well.
Even though the media refuse to remind Democratic presidential candidates who complain the U.S. health care system is broken that system is Obamacare, Biden can’t very well trash his boss’s signature accomplishment (if it can be called an “accomplishment”).
So Biden’s plan is to double down on Obamacare, trying to get even more Americans hooked on what might be called the modern day “opiate of the masses”—free health care.
Biden wants to raise the income limits to receive taxpayer-provided health insurance subsidies, even though the current limit is over $100,000 for a family of four. (Apparently, we’re defining poverty up.)
And he wants a “public option,” which in Biden’s plan is a Medicare buy-in option.
And, of course, Biden wants to re-impose the mandate to have health insurance, even though there is virtually no evidence that eliminating it has had a major impact on the uninsured.
Yes, the percentage of uninsured has been rising, but that started in late 2016. The mandate wasn’t effectively eliminated until six months ago.
So Biden’s plan is to get more Americans hooked on “free” (read: taxpayer-funded) health care, which would have two discernible political effects.
First, Obamacare's problems with rising health care costs and lack of access to doctors and insurers would continue to grow.
Second, and as a result, more Americans would throw up their hands and be willing to accept the Medicare for All alternative. Mission accomplished.
Biden wants to transition to a government-run, single-payer health care system just like most of the other Democratic presidential candidates. He just wants to bide his time before taking the country there.
July 16, 2019