Lawmakers should stay focused on the repeal and replacement of Obamacare

One of the principal motivations what inspired the creation of the Association of Mature American Citizens (AMAC) was to overturn the Affordable Care Act and return control of health care to we the people. The unilateral creation of Obamacare by Democrats in Congress and their ideological leader, Barak Obama, was an overt attempt to put the way Americans care for themselves firmly in the hands of Big Government and it did just that.

AMAC has not lost sight of the goal of repealing and replacing the Affordable Care Act and the organization is delighted that the new Republican leadership in Washington is now able to do just that.

Despite the naysayers, it can be done, as the Republican Congress proved in 2015 when it passed legislation to repeal the most egregious provisions of the law. Our representatives on the Hill knew that President Obama would veto the measure but the legislation gave us hope that it could be done. We are mindful that it will not be an easy process and that it may take longer than we might like to see, but now — under the leadership of [new President] Trump — there is real hope.

Recently, the Conservative Action Project, an organization made up of the CEOs of more than 100 organizations including AMAC, sent a clear message to lawmakers, calling on Congress to deliver on the mandate the American people gave them in November to repeal Obamacare completely.

The memo reads, in part: “For the last six years, Americans have endured extraordinary hardship under Obamacare, a thousand-page law of broken promises and failed policies. Sadly, millions of families and individuals have had their insurance plans cancelled and access to their doctors and drugs limited. And they have lacked affordable insurance options. Those Americans who are stuck with Obamacare are facing skyrocketing premiums, soaring deductibles, and shrinking health-care networks. Tragically, many of our most vulnerable citizens, who were participating in safety-net health programs long before implementation of Obamacare’s Medicaid expansion, must now wait interminably to see overwhelmed health-care providers — and some of those people die while they wait. It is true, of course, that some people have benefitted from the President’s law, but given the money spent, it would be extraordinary if there had been no benefit at all.”

The Senate, the House, and [President] Trump have put Obamacare at their top of their to-do list. 

 “Congress and [President] Trump have a daunting task ahead of them, but we are confident that they will be able to overcome the many challenges they face. The Affordable Care Act is loaded with landmines, but we know where they are and with a little ingenuity they can — and they must — be disarmed. What’s at stake here is not the promises of repeal that helped the GOP regain the reins of government; it is the future of our nation. Obamacare not only did great damage to the health-care infrastructure of America, it put the entire economy of the country at great risk.

Despite the mistake made by the Supreme Court in allowing this law — calling it a tax — the fact remains the Constitution never intended for the federal government to control our individual freedom by dictating how we may provide for our health care.                 

Dan Weber is founder and president of AMAC, a senior advocacy and membership organization for people age 50 and over. This opinion article is drawn from a news release that the organization issued on Jan. 13.