"Where's the Train Wreck"
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Most Americans like their Obamacare — even Republicans. "The Commonwealth Fund study...found that more than three-quarters of those who had either enrolled in Medicaid or bought a private insurance plan in one of the new marketplaces created by the law reported that they were either 'very' or 'somewhat' satisfied with their new coverage....More than half (58%) said they were better off because of their new coverage, compared with 9% who reported they were worse off. About 1 in 4 said the new coverage had not had an effect one way or the other....Although people who identified themselves as Democrats reported somewhat higher levels of satisfaction, roughly 3 out of 4 Republicans said they were satisfied with their new health plans." David Lauter in the Los Angeles Times.
And most are able to see their doctors, after all. "60 percent of people with new coverage, either through Medicaid or a private health plan, said they had already visited a health-care provider or filled a prescription. Just about one in five of those with new coverage, though, said they tried to find a primary care doctor — but of those, 75 percent said their search was somewhat easy or very easy. And once they found a primary care doctor, most new enrollees said they were able to make an appointment within two weeks....This isn't all to say that there aren't problems accessing care. There are recent lawsuits from patients who say they can't find doctors or that their plans discriminate against their conditions, and there are major application backlogs for Medicaid in at least six states. The federal agency overseeing Medicaid is now planning its own study of how easily beneficiaries can access care." Jason Millman in The Washington Post.
But there remains a major red-blue divide in uninsured rates. "That means the remaining uninsured Americans increasingly are concentrated in states that have declined to expand Medicaid — primarily Southern and Midwestern states with Republican-controlled governments that have been hostile to the new law and, in many cases, have tried to impede its implementation. That political resistance could be a major factor in holding down enrollments in the next couple of years. Moreover, despite extensive outreach efforts and considerable news coverage over the last year, many people still report being unaware of the new insurance marketplaces the law created. Even more did not know that the law provides financial aid to help people buy coverage, the Commonwealth study found." Chad Terhune and David Lauter in the Los Angeles Times.
Chart: This map shows how people in red states are more likely to be uninsured than in blue states. Sean Sullivan in The Washington Post.
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