In an effort to get ahead of the Republican repeal of Obamacare under President Trump, Democrats held a press conference two weeks ago claiming GOP lawmakers want to "Make America Sick Again."
"The Republican plan to cut healthcare wouldn't make America great again, it would make America sick again," Senator Minority Leader Chuck Schumer said. "They seek to rip healthcare away from millions of Americans, creating chaos in our entire economy."
"If you want Grandma living in the guest room, then repeal the Affordable Care Act," House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi added. "Make America sick again, is that what the Republicans want to do?"
Now, Harvard professors are piling on the fear mongering by claiming at least 43,000 people will die if Obamacare is repealed. From their piece in the Washington Post:
The biggest and most definitive study of what happens to death rates when Medicaid coverage is expanded, published in the New England Journal of Medicine, found that for every 455 people who gained coverage across several states, one life was saved per year. Applying that figure to even a conservative estimate of 20 million losing coverage in the event of an ACA repeal yields an estimate of 43,956 deaths annually.
First, it's important to remember who brought us Obamacare: professors. Take for example MIT professor and Obamacare architect Jonathan Gruber. He's the guy who called Americans stupid and advocated for a lack of transparency in order to get away with an increase in healthcare costs through Obamacare.
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Second, people weren't dying in the streets before Obamacare and they won't be dying in the streets after Obamacare is repealed. Certainly not by the thousands. You will however find thousands of deaths over at the VA, where veterans are still waiting for healthcare.
Third as President Trump, Speaker Ryan and all Republicans have been saying for years, Obamacare will not be repealed without a viable replacement that keeps those previously insured covered in the future.
We are a compassionate country and even those without health insurance receive care. Arguing thousands will die if Obamacare is repealed is not only cynical, it's irresponsible and untrue.
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