Obamacare woes deeper than website

Gene Lyons’ Nov. 26 column titled “Fix the website and ACA will shine” is filled with half-truths and false innuendos.

For openers, the $600 million website is not the ACA’s major problem. It pales in comparison to the disaster that is just starting to unfold. Over 9 million individuals are losing their current health insurance and they will soon be joined by an estimated 40 million employees of small companies that will terminate their medical benefit plans.

These problems will be compounded when young adults decide to pay a fine instead of signing up for a high-deductible policy they won’t be able to use. They will also avoid putting their personal information on a website that has major security problems.

The third shoe to fall will be the IPAB board, an all-powerful group whose function is to dramatically cut Medicare. The board will not answer to Congress and is referred to as a “death panel” because its work can only lead to rationed care. Please read Section 3403 of the Act and draw your own conclusions.

Lastly, Mr. Lyons implies Republicans are against health care reform and good things in the ACA like portability and the elimination of pre-existing conditions. House Republicans have passed several bills that include these positive steps as well as important fixes that are not a part of Obamacare. The latter include big cost-cutting ideas like tort reform, shopping for insurance across state lines and medical savings accounts.

Congress must completely overhaul the ACA; stripping out its terrible features and replacing them with the many good reform ideas that have been proposed by both sides of the aisle.

Dick Stack

Huntley