Trumpcare = Trump doesn't care

If there's one thing people should take from the new healthcare proposal, now referred to as Trumpcare, it's that Donald Trump and the other leaders of the Republican Party don't care. While the Affordable Care Act, or Obamacare, is anything but a perfect law, it did help pave the way toward the lowest uninsured rate in this country's recorded history. Over 22 million who were uninsured prior to the ACA's implementation now have health insurance because of it. What is the CBO (Congressional Budget Office) projecting with regard to the American Health Care Act (Trumpcare)? Over 24 million losing healthcare. What's worse, even after Donald Trump claimed the CBO was biased prior to their reported analysis, the White House followed the CBO's projection by themselves predicting 26 million more would be uninsured following the implementation of the AHCA. Let's look at those numbers a bit more closely.

Obamacare: +22 million insured

Trumpcare: -24 million insured

Difference: Obamacare +46 million/Trumpcare -46 million

So the uninsured rate would climb from approximately 28 million to 52 million, or to put it another way, from 10.9% to 20.2%, the lowest to the highest such reading in recorded history. Not only is there that grand disparity (not so grand for 24 million people), there's also a stark contrast in the two healthcare plans' tax credits. Here's how they compare:

Lower-income ($20,000)
Age 27: Affordable Care Act (ACA) - $3,225, American Health Care Act (AHCA) - $2,000 (+/-$1,225)
Age 40: ACA - $4,143, AHCA - $3,000 (+/-$1,143)
Age 60: ACA - $9,874, AHCA - $4,000 (+/-$5,874)

Middle-income ($40,000)
Age 27: ACA - $103, AHCA - $2,000 (+/-$1,897)
Age 40: ACA - $1,021, AHCA - $3,000 (+/-$1,979)
Age 60: ACA - $6,752, AHCA - $4,000 (+/-$2,752)

Higher-income ($75,000)
Age 27: ACA - $0, AHCA - $2,000 (+/-$2,000)
Age 40: ACA - $0, AHCA - $3,000 (+/-$3,000)
Age 60: ACA - $0, AHCA - $4,000 (+/-$4,000)

So, according to Donald Trump, Paul Ryan and company, those making $75,000 a year should receive the same amount of aid as those making $20,000 a year. Fascinating...

When it comes to projected net premiums for 2026, the numbers are even worse for "Trumpcare."

Incomes of $26,500
Age 21: ACA - $1,700, AHCA - $1,450 (+/-$250)
Age 40: ACA - $1,700, AHCA - $2,400 (+/-$700)
Age 64: ACA - $1,700, AHCA - $14,600 (+/-$12,900)

Incomes of $68,200
Age 21: ACA - $5,100, AHCA - $1,450 (+/-$3,650)
Age 40: ACA - $6,500, AHCA - $2,400 (+/-$4,100)
Age 64: ACA - $15,300, AHCA - $14,600 (+/-$700)

Let's delve deeper into the numbers here and see what percent of these groups' incomes would go to their healthcare premiums.

Incomes of $26,500
Age 21: ACA - 6.4%, AHCA - 5.5%
Age 40: ACA - 6.4%, AHCA - 9.1%
Age 64: ACA - 6.4%, AHCA - 55.1%

Incomes of $68,200
Age 21: ACA - 7.5%, AHCA - 2.1%
Age 40: ACA - 9.5%, AHCA - 3.5%
Age 64: ACA - 22.4%, AHCA - 21.4%

In the GOP's plan, those making $26,500 pay a larger percentage of their income on premiums than those making $68,200. How in all that is logical does that make sense? Worst of all, in the GOP's plan, those aged 64 or older would pay over 55% of their annual incomes on their premiums!

So, under the American Health Care Act, the uninsured rate will nearly double, tax credits will decrease for those who need it most and increase for those who need it least, and those who typically need healthcare coverage the most will wind up spending more than half their annual incomes on AHCA premiums. The Affordable Care Act, or Obamacare as it's widely known, may not be perfect and may need some fixing up, but Trumpcare is a national embarrassment and showcases that Donald Trump, Paul Ryan, and the other heads of the GOP do anything but care about the American people.

http://www.businessinsider.com/ahca-obamacare-replacement-winners-and-losers-tax-credits-2017-3

http://www.newsweek.com/trumpcare-obamacare-health-insurance-trump-paul-ryan-cbo-congressional-budget-567393

http://www.gallup.com/poll/201641/uninsured-rate-holds-low-fourth-quarter.aspx