On September 29th, the first of four debates between President Donald Trump and challenger former Vice President Joe Biden was held. We now have a glimpse into where each candidate sees the healthcare debate. Regardless of who you believe won the first debate or whether you thought the debate was just a shouting match, it is clear that the healthcare debate is centered on two issues, the nomination of Judge Amy Coney Barrett to the Supreme Court of the United States (SCOTUS) and how well the government has reacted and is reacting to the coronavirus outbreak. Neither of those issues are reform unless you believe eliminating the Affordable Care Act (ACA) without a suitable replacement is somehow reform.
Nomination of Judge Amy Coney Barrett to SCOTUS. Now that President Trump has nominated Judge Amy Coney Barrett, the battle lines are being drawn between the Republicans and their support for Judge Barrett and the Democrats and their opposition to Judge Barrett. The Republicans, for the most part, predictably are supporting Judge Barrett based on her body of work and her “originalist” view of the constitution. The Democrats predictably are opposed to Judge Barrett because they view her as a conservative and they believe the position should be nominated by the the winner of next month’s presidential election.
As I mentioned in the last Black Jet Theory Volume 2020-20, the SCOTUS will hear oral arguments in the California v Texas lawsuit the week after the election this November.[1] The SCOTUS could rule that the ACA is unconstitutional. The Democrats and Vice President Biden have seized the opportunity to characterize Judge Barrett’s nomination and subsequent confirmation as the death blow to the ACA and women’s reproductive rights, more salable political positions than just being anti-conservative.
The Republicans are hailing Judge Barrett’s nomination as brilliant and suggest that the President and the Senate have the precedence and the right to fill the vacancy while they are still in control of the White House and the upper chamber of Congress. Given the contentious nature of our government these days neither the Republican nor the Democrat positions are surprising. Thus, we will continue down the path of a divided government, at least until the next President and newly elected members of the Senate are sworn in, presumably in January.
Handling of the Coronavirus Outbreak. Predictably Biden is blaming the deaths due to the virus on Trump’s lack of taking the virus seriously at an early stage. This argument is shallow given that Trump shut down travel from China early on above the protests from the Democrats who called Trump a racist for suggesting such a ban. Trump is taking credit for reducing the early estimates of deaths from in excess of two million to slightly over two hundred thousand. There is an enormous amount of information and misinformation in the sea of ideas about a virus that we still know very little. It will continue to be in the forefront of the debate.
And then lo and behold, the President contracts the virus. Now that he has been released from the hospital politics abound. The debate will continue to focus on whether the shut-down of the economy was necessary, when a safe vaccine will be available, when are masks appropriate and why this pandemic was handled politically when all previous pandemics were handled medically without the intervention of politics. Expect more finger pointing.
The Trump Plan. Even though Biden accused Trump of not having a plan, Trump announced his “Healthcare Agenda” on August 25. The agenda advocates for lower drug prices, lower health insurance premiums, ending surprise billing, covering all pre-existing conditions, protecting Social Security and Medicare and protecting our veterans.[2] A more extensive plan which is spelled out in the Republican platform, that the President has endorsed, includes the items above but also includes rescinding the individual mandate in the Affordable Care Act, the subject of the SCOTUS case California v. Texas. In addition, the platform supports repealing the entire Affordable Care Act, calls for health care price transparency and accelerated generic drug approval, curbs federal spending that directly or indirectly supports abortion, allows employers to pay premiums in the individual market, and other provisions.[3]
The Biden Plan. Biden has a comprehensive plan that can be found on his website[4] and follows the Democratic Party platform which he has endorsed. The Biden plan includes; introduction of the public option where individuals can “opt in” to the Medicare system, protection and expansion of the Affordable Care Act, and provision of free health care to illegal aliens. Additionally, it forces all states to expand Medicaid, eliminates surprise billing, repeals the ban on Medicare from negotiating drug prices, treats abortion as a constitutional right by restoring funding to Planned Parenthood, doubles the federal funding for community health centers, excludes drug ads from tax deductible costs for pharma companies, expands national and global vaccine programs and other provisions.[5]
The two plans represent a different view of healthcare in America. One is for less government, the support for a more market-based approach and changing the trajectory away from a government-controlled system or socialized medicine. The other is more government control of healthcare and continuing the trajectory toward a government-controlled system. There is some common ground (such as eliminating surprise billing, lowering drug prices and protecting coverage for pre-existing conditions) that gives the Black Jet hope that some progress can be achieved regardless of who wins.
The Black Jet Theory[6] would conclude that the real debate should be over the conflicting plans. The bad news is that the nomination of Amy Coney Barrett to the SCOTUS and the COVID 19 pandemic seems to have overshadowed what the real debate should be. I suppose most reading this issue of the Black Jet Theory have already decided between Trump and Biden. If healthcare is your issue the differences are clear.
Don’t take my word for it, think for yourself.
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[1] Snipes M. Black Jet Theory – Volume 2020-20 – Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg and Healthcare
September 25, 2020. https://www.blackjettheory.com/black-jet-theory-volume-2020-20-justice-ruth-bader-ginsburg-and-healthcare/
[2] Firth S. Trump Unveils Healthcare Agenda. MedPage Today August 25, 2020 https://www.medpagetoday.com/washington-watch/electioncoverage/88250
[3] Cuthbertson C. Trump and Biden Policy Stances, a Summary. The Epoch Times September 13, 2020.
https://www.theepochtimes.com/trump-and-biden-policy-stances-2_3483640.html
[4] Biden Harris website. https://joebiden.com/healthcare/
[5] Cuthbertson C. Trump and Biden Policy Stances, a Summary. The Epoch Times September 13, 2020.
https://www.theepochtimes.com/trump-and-biden-policy-stances-2_3483640.html
[6] Snipes M. The Black Jet Theory is “the notion that most of what currently happens, when viewed through the filter of common sense and critical thinking, leads to a different conclusion, than the widespread view of current thinking by those who control the dissemination and content of information (academia, the media, politicians and other “experts”). Black Jet Theory – Volume 2020-1, May 1, 2020. Article upon request [email protected] or visit the Black Jet Theory Website at blackjettheory.com.