By Trenisha Wiggins
The Birmingham Times
Former president Barack Obama ripped into a planned GOP Senate bill that will do away core elements of the Affordable Care Act known commonly as Obamacare.
“We didn’t fight for the Affordable Care Act for more than a year in the public square for any personal or political gain – we fought for it because we knew it would save lives, prevent financial misery, and ultimately set this country we love on a better, healthier course,” wrote Obama in a Facebook post last week, according to CNN.com
Obama said Republican replacement health care plans “rushed through” the GOP-run House and Senate “would raise costs, reduce coverage, roll back protections, and ruin Medicaid as we know it.”
According to CNN, the 143-page GOP healthcare bill would repeal Obamacare’s individual mandate, cut back federal support of Medicaid, and eliminate Obamacare’s taxes on the wealthy, insurers and others.
The Republicans are seeking a vote on the bill as early as this week.
“Thousands upon thousands of Americans, including Republicans, threw themselves into that collective effort, not for political reasons, but for intensely personal ones – a sick child, a parent lost to cancer, the memory of medical bills that threatened to derail their dreams,” wrote Obama.
The former president also admitted that the initial bill was not flawless, but provided the foundation needed to encourage and establish healthcare for all. However, he also challenges the Republican party saying that if they should create a bill that improves Obamacare then he would give his support.
“I was careful to say again and again that while the Affordable Care Act represented a significant step forward for America, it was not perfect, nor could it be the end of our efforts – and that if Republicans could put together a plan that is demonstrably better than the improvements we made to our health care system, that covers as many people at less cost, I would gladly and publicly support it.
Concluding his statement, Obama calls the character of the country into question.
“After all, this debate has always been about something bigger than politics. It’s about the character of our country – who we are, and who we aspire to be. And that’s always worth fighting for.”
CNN and USA Today contributed to this story.
