What’s the Obamacare Subsidy Debate Overlooking? High Health Care – Not Insurance
By Amélia Hamilton
Whether to extend Obamacare’s enhanced subsidies has dominated the health policy debate in Washington. These grants were a key point of contention during the recent government shutdown and, after a 45-day shutdown, the government reopened in mid-November with no solutions. Instead, Democrats and Republicans agreed to take a vote in December on the extension of subsidies. (The Senate rejected the extension, but the House recently voted in favor of the extension.)
SEE: Four Republicans jump ship and side with Jeffries on extending Obamacare subsidies
But while Congress fights for the extension, the fundamental issue is being neglected. With or without extensive subsidies, health care costs are too high.
Formally called enhanced premium tax credits, these federal government grants are intended to help pay premiums and out-of-pocket costs for those who receive health care through the Affordable Care Act (ACA) exchanges. These tax credits were Imeant to be temporary and have already been extended.
People would not feel as threatened by the loss of these subsidies if the cost of health care was within their budget. Unfortunately, while the average American family worries about medical bills, “non-profit” hospitals spend staggering amounts of money on luxury goods. Health systems like Christus, Mercy, Montefiore, OchsnerAnd SSM Health executives were flown first class or even by private jet at the company’s expense. In some cases, the company even paid their traveling companion. Their generous salaries could certainly have at least covered the latter.
They also invest in bizarre and unrelated business ventures. Take Maine Medical, for example. As part of an expansion plan, the large hospital system acquired a building housing a pizzeria. That wouldn’t be so strange, except they plan to keep the downstairs as a pizzeria and even help the current owners find a new operator so they can retire.
Not to be outdone, the Ochsner Clinic Foundation in Louisiana now runs a hotel. And I really don’t know what Mercy Health is doing in Antarctica, but in recent years they have spent millions there every year.
Elsewhere, Montefiore Einstein Hospital in the Bronx tapped Paul Giamatti to tell the story of a lung transplant patient in a brilliant video directed by Oscar-winning director Alexander Payne. In fact, Montefiore spent millions on creative agency Alto every year for these high-end celebrity-led campaigns.
Who do you think ends up paying these bills? Insurers cannot simply absorb these costs.
To pay for famous actors, delicious pizza and the mysteries of Antarctica, health systems have been willing to charge patients more. For their part, insurers are not willing to say “yes” to everything. Health systems across the country are calling for increases in reimbursement rates which far exceeds inflation and it would cost employers, families, government programs and patients hundreds of millions of dollars.
From Oregon to Nebraska to Connecticut to Colorado to Florida, examples abound of hospital systems prioritizing ways to charge more for services rather than tightening their often already overstretched belts.
The debate over subsidies is important, but it’s even more important that health care watchdogs keep their eye on the ball. There are much bigger problems when it comes to health care costs, and they are only getting worse.
Amelia Hamilton is a writer and communications professional from Michigan with more than a decade of experience spreading messages to promote freedom. Amelia holds an undergraduate and master’s degree in English and 18th-century history from the University of St. Andrews in Scotland.
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