Tuesday, June 27, 2017

The GOP bill isn't just 22 million Americans losing health insurance—it's 28,600 murders

https://www.dailykos.com/stories/2017/6/27/1675680/-The-GOP-bill-isn-t-just-22-million-Americans-losing-health-insurance-it-s-28-600-murders
"In what may be the year’s most timely study, the Annals of Internal Medicine published a study on Monday showing something that should be obvious, but needs to be stated: Insurance saves lives. The evidence strengthens confidence in the Institute of Medicine's conclusion that health insurance saves lives: The odds of dying among the insured relative to the uninsured is 0.71 to 0.97. What does that mean? It means that for every 1 million people who lose health insurance, 1,300 will die early. Combine that with the CBO score of the latest Senate healthcare bill and the cost for Republicans meeting their “repeal and replace” talking point isn’t just measured in the huge increases in cost to individuals. It’s 28,600 dead Americans who would be alive if Obamacare stays in place. It’s murder to score political points with their base. Where do those deaths come from? Uninsured people are less likely to engage in preventative care. They’re more likely to wait until conditions are more serious before seeking treatment. They’re less likely to get the best quality care or necessary follow-up care. Since the passage of the Affordable Care Act, the ranks of the uninsured have been cut by 20 million. That’s 26,000 lives saved. But Trump and the Republicans are ready to throw those lives and more down the drain … because that’s the real price of getting revenge on Barack Obama."