Tom Price admits older people would pay a lot more under Trumpcare, says 'somebody's going to pay'

[CousinIT]

The words "somebody’s going to pay" are rarely comforting ones, and when they're coming from the Health and Human Services Secretary, and he's talking about whether health care is going to be affordable for older people under the plan he's endorsing, they're even more ominous. But that's how Tom Price bats away concerns that this bill is really bad for older people.

In an interview with "Fox & Friends," HHS Secretary Tom Price was asked about part of Republicans' bill that widens the possible ratio of premium prices between young and old people from 3:1 to 5:1, allowing insurers to charge older people more.

"That's going in the wrong direction," Steve Doocy said.

"Well, it's pricing for what individuals' health status is, and that's important to appreciate," Price said. "Somebody's going to pay for health coverage for the American people, and the question is how do you do that. And right now, what we're seeing is that the current plan doesn't work, because you've got 20 million individuals out there who've said, ‘Nonsense, I'm not even going to participate in this process.'"

Those would be the 20 million who did indeed decide not to get insurance, but more of them are the people who have hardship exemptions under the law because they can't afford to pay for insurance. They're the Medicaid gap people, in states that didn't expand Medicaid. So they're too poor to qualify for subsidies on the marketplace, but don't qualify for traditional Medicaid. People who would probably very much like to "participate in this process" of having health care.

https://www.dailykos.com/stories/2017/5/5/1659318/-Tom-Price-admits-older-people-would-pay-a-lot-more-under-Trumpcare-says-somebody-s-going-to-pay

[Stallion]

1. LOVELY! Especially Speaking to FoxNews 70+ Viewing Audience

you'll probably hear that repeated over and over in campaigns

[TBA]

2. Like my daughter who is in school

Zero income right now but no medicaid expansion in our state. Too old to be on my policy.

[Freddie]

3. It's not the 70+ age group

They have theirs (Medicare) so, in Repug terms, "I got mine so screw you." It's the 50 - 64 group that's going to get stuck up the wazoo.

[librechik]

4. somebody--just not the folks who have all the money. They get a tax break

and the right to laugh at the rest of us.