By Ryan DeOrdio
Staff Writer
The two-year anniversary of President Obama’s health care law has been recognized with public wariness and an ongoing Supreme Court challenge. Not only should the Court claim constitutionality, but it should also be widely supported.
Misinformation in media coverage on the Affordable Care Act is partly responsible. A March 22 USA Today article referred to the law as “Obamacare.” In addition, a search of “obamacare yahoo,” showed six Yahoo! News headlines using the term. Obamacare implies the law is not about health care, but about President Obama’s radical agenda to egotistically alter a system that cares for the well-being of Americans.
The individual mandate is one of the most controversial parts of the law, and is subject to examination by the Supreme Court. This part of the law mandates Americans to buy health insurance or pay a fine, according to a March 22 USA Today article. If there’s a problem with forcing people to buy health insurance, there should be a problem with forcing people to buy car insurance.
However, the car insurance mandate is not being criticized. Clearly, the opposition to the president’s health care law is politically charged. The heated politics surrounding the law provide a poisonous environment that breeds an unfair influence on the Supreme Court, which is structured to be unaffected by political partiality.
To scream “unconstitutional” about the health care mandate or any mandate is to misinterpret the Constitution. Article One, Section Eight of the Constitution states, “
“The Congress shall have power to … regulate commerce with foreign nations, and among the several states.” The law passed, 60-39, in the Senate, according to senate.gov. In addition, the law passed the House of Representatives, 219-212, according to clerk.house.gov.
Any student on the St. Bonaventure campus and all university campuses-should support the law because it allows parents to keep their children on their health-insurance plan until their children are 26, according to a May 10, 2010 New York Times article. This doesn’t mean students will mooch off their parents insurance — it means they’ll have time to find a job offering insurance once they’re out of school. This will also mean recent graduates will have more money to spend, considering they won’t have to cover the cost of health insurance. More spending means more goods bought, and more money made by those selling goods, thus more money to hire workers. Republican presidential candidate Newt Gingrich twisted this coverage expansion, stating, “Elect us, and your kids will be able to move out.” As we all know, as your ability to afford medical care increases, so too skyrockets the appeal of your parents basement futon.
The law also states insurers can’t deny treatment for those with pre-existing conditions, such as cancer, according to a March 22 Tampa Bay Times article. Repealing the law says ‘this country values making a dollar more than the life of cancer patients.’
Medicare premiums are also lower since passing the Affordable Care Act. Medicare premiums in 2012 were predicted to be $7 less than projected, according to an Oct. 27, 2011 USA Today article. In addition to lower Medicare premiums, insurers are required to spend at least 80 percent of premium revenue on medical care, according to a June 30, 2010 politifact.com article.
In short, the Affordable Care Act expands coverage, lowers the cost of premiums and improves transparency in the medical industry – or as its critics call it, ‘an un-American socialist government takeover.’
deordirr10@bonaventure.edu.
