In the furious debate over Rep. Paul Ryan’s Medicare plan, one key aspect that is almost entirely overlooked is the rank hypocrisy of the Republicans who tout the proposed Medicare exchange by saying that seniors would have health care coverage similar to Congress.
This sales pitch is just nauseating because, essentially, the same Republicans who blasted “Obamacare” for nearly two years now embrace its central feature.
The health care system signed into law by the president sets up exchanges – marketplaces where uninsured people will shop for insurance – at the state level. All policies offered would have to meet certain minimum standards – under current law and under the Ryan plan – because the process is modeled after the system offered to all federal government employees, including members of Congress.
The exchanges are market-based approach, not a “government takeover.” They do not include “death panels” or bureaucrats who decide when and whether you will receive medical care.
If Ryan & Co. seek support for their plan, maybe they can issue a high-profile mea culpa and admit to the nation that they repeatedly lied about the national health care reform law.
