A Nebraska Congressman still has hope that health care reform can move forward.
Congressman Jeff Fortenberry says Congress likely should stay away from trying wholesale change again. He says policies can be adopted to lessen what he calls the harsh trends that are hurting people.
“Spiking premiums as well as people being completely priced out of the insurance market,” Fortenberry tells Nebraska Radio Network, “while at the same time guaranteeing some kind of support for those who feel highly vulnerable and highly anxious about any potential changes.”
Some suggest single-payer. Fortenberry fears that could undermine the innovation that has made such strides in United States health care.
“One size doesn’t fit all in America and I think there would be significant resistance to that movement even though there’s a portion of the population that wants to see that,” Fortenberry says.
An effort in the United States Senate to scuttle the Affordable Care Act and replace it failed when enough Republicans split from the majority and wouldn’t vote for it. The failure sparked a spat between President Donald Trump and Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell of Kentucky, with Trump blaming McConnell for the failure.
McConnell claimed Trump had “excessive expectations” of Congress due to his lack of understanding of the difficulties in the legislative process. Trump countered that Republicans in Congress have been talking about replacing and repealing the ACA for seven years and should have been able to follow through.
The House approved its version of repeal and replace in May.
President Barack Obama and Democrats in Congress muscled through the ACA in 2010 without Republican support.
AUDIO: Brent Martin reports [:45]