According to Andrews (2012, p.1), president Obama finally managed to get through a bill that had escaped “a string of Democratic presidents.” This is the healthcare bill. However, it was not an easy ride for him either. As it is well known in the American senate, there is the requirement for a 60% favor in approval of any bill and only then can it be passed into a law. Of course, there is a possibility that the president can veto it, but this implies that the bill might not stand for long as it can be easily repealed. Furthermore, if it does not appeal to the people, it can as well lead to the loss of confidence in the president. The democratic government had a year long of what Andrews (2012, p.1) terms as a year of partisan combat.
But why was there so much controversy surrounding the bill? To start off, there is the need to look at the provisions of the same. This is a Care Act that will help millions of Americans get medical cover since it extends the cover to about 30 million Americans. This will be achieved through the expansion of the Medicaid plan and the provision of federal subsidies to the lower and middle income earners in the country so as to allow them to buy the private coverage. Of course, there are some benefits of the law. For instance, it implies that the insurers cannot deny individuals coverage based on the pre-existing conditions. It also makes sure that the Americans are not left in the cold when it comes to healthcare. They are well covered and protected from any form of discrimination. The plan. If executed as planned, could be a way to ensuring that the Americans have a sound health policy.
If that is the case, then there is a question as to why there is so much controversy surrounding the issue. Normally, it would be expected that such a bill has the support of the majority of the legislatures. It is the kind of bill that would be thought to go beyond the party loyalties and bring the people together. However, this is not the case. Rather, the Republicans were and still are so much against the bill, vowing to repeal it. In fact, the Republican presidential aspirant Mitt Romney has vowed that if he gets to power he will repeal this bill. The first argument against the bill is that it is quite costly. Andrews (2012, p. 1) has it that the bill will cost the tax payer a whooping 938 billion dollars over the next decade. Well, the figure does not look very small to the Republicans and their supporters and they feel that the bill should not be in place.
Another concern is that the bill seems to infringe on the freedom of choice of the Americans. According to the provisions of the bill, there is a possibility that the citizens who fail to register might face a fine in terms of individual mandate. In other words, the Americans are put in a fixed position where they have to buy the boil or face the consequences. Well, it is well known that the nation is built on the fundamental human rights, one of which is the freedom of choice. Having such a bill means that the people do not have much of a choice than to buy the healthcare insurance. Well, this does not seem to sit well with many who are of the idea that their rights have to be respected and valued.
There is also another side to the bill as noted by Pear (2012, p. 1). He argues that the bill excludes the young immigrants from the benefits of the same. In other words, though the bill extends the healthcare services to most of the American people, it also denies most of the inhabitants a chance at better health. It is also quiet controversial that the president, in his policies and more so the education policy, argues that the young immigrants are an asset to the American country. This is because these are people who come to the country; get the education they need and then participate in the activities which lead to the economical advancement of the country. in so arguing, the president seemed to be in favor of the immigrants and it was thought that he could do anything to make sure that their stay in the US was safe and sound.
However, the health bill acts in contrast to what the president seemed to believe in. it sis for this reason that Pea (2012, p. 1) argues that the bill seems to be contradicting on the presidents stands in the matter of the immigrants. It is also controversial as to why the immigrants should be allowed into the country and given the right resources, only to be rendered unproductive since they lack a basic thing; healthcare. In the long run, the US would be loosing since it would train the people but they would eventually walk away to places where their health issues can be effectively looked into. This is a serious matter which implies that the implications of the health care bill are quite far-reaching.
Armed with this information, the Republicans voted against the bill 245 to 189, calling for repeal. This move was quite significant, especially given the Democrats control of the White House and the Senate. Eventually, the matter went to court in 2011 where the Supreme Court agreed to hear a challenge to the so-called Affordable Care Act. In the ruling, the court largely upheld the health care bill with a 5 to 4 decision. Of course, this was a great relief to the president and the democrats who felt that they had triumphed. However, the battle has not ended yet. There are a lot of concerns and issues related to the bill. The Republicans are still for the position that it should be repealed, and should they win the next elections, there is a very high possibility that they could repeal it. This implies that it is not yet celebration time for the Democrats. They should not count their chicks as yet, though it seems like they have bagged it.
In conclusion, the above essay has looked at the controversy surrounding the healthcare bill. It has looked at the challenges encountered in passing it and the current arguments against it. All in all, the bill went through a rough ride into being accepted, having to be asserted by the ruling of the Supreme Court. It can be said to be one of the most phenomenal acts of the Obama administration and one that he had to fight for as well.
References
Andres, S. (2012). Health Care Reform. New York Times, 3rd Nov. 2012. Retrieved on 4th Nov. 2012 from http://topics.nytimes.com/top/news/health/diseasesconditionsandhealthtopics/health_insurance_and_managed_care/health_care_reform/index.html
Pear, R. (2012). Limits Placed on Immigrants in Health Care Law. New York Times, 17th Sept. 2012. Retrieved on 4th Nov. 2012 from http://www.nytimes.com/2012/09/18/health/policy/limits-placed-on-immigrants-in-health-care-law.html?pagewanted=all
