BONKERS!

I've just seen MSNBC's Chuck Todd discussing how the White House is disappointed that the insurance industry isn't publicly supporting Obamacare. I don't know what to make of that notion--or whether it's even true. Clearly, the insurance companies would much rather Obamacare not take effect so that we're stuck with the same crazy system we have now, in which health care costs are the #1 cause of bankruptcy in the country and you can be denied or kicked off your coverage if you're actually ill and need it. In discussing it further, Chuck explained that the health care industry killed Hillary's attempt at reform in the 90s, so Obama decided to build on our existing system of insurance rather than start with a totally new model like single payer. Then he explained that the White House hoped insurance would be more appreciative of the ACA since it was crafted to bring the insurance companies more business, that additional business being the additional customers who could now afford insurance at a cheaper price. Hungh? I thought this was crafted to help people access health care. It was crafted as a gift to the insurance industry? And this is being openly admitted on the liberal news channel which is more likely to support Obama than any other? We should have gone for real reform. My mom (a former nurse) checked on my existing plan and Obamacare does not reduce the price one dime for me. Although, I suppose they can't kick me off the plan if I become seriously ill. Which this whole process is making me. I suppose I could quit my current plan--this is America and I'm still free, right? Actually, no. The ACA's mandate forces me to buy insurance or be fined. I try to be optimistic and tell myself that anything the Republicans want to shut down the government to prevent must be a good thing. I try to tell myself that while not single payer, which of us many wanted and which every other industrialized nation seems to be managing with, the ACA is a step in the right direction. But when you hear the more democratic-leaning TV news station openly admitting that Obamacare is designed to benefit the insurance industry rather than people, you're forced to see the difference between foolish optimism and waking up to how our government works. It works against us--those who elected them. And let's not forget the meeting where Obama invited big pharma to the White House with no press allowed before Obamacare could even be created--just to make sure that that other health-related industry knew they would still be able to give us less for more. So much for the transparency that Obama campaigned on. This is a shambles. And how about the latest report which claims that senior White House staff knew the roll-out had kinks and that there was "scant" testing? The end effect is that you start to distrust the government's capability to handle health care. So you give up and go back to your pitiful system of private insurance. A tea partier's dream come true! HUFFPO: Obamacare Report: Obama Administration Knew About Health Care Law's Rollout Risks Last Spring MORE: HUFFPO