If Republicans want to have a prayer of competing with Democrats on healthcare, they need to bury the conventional wisdom that Obamacare “banned” (Elizabeth O’Brien, Time), “outlawed” (Sharon Begley, Reuters), and “ended” (House Speaker Nancy Pelosi) discrimination against patients with preexisting conditions.
Obamacare has not eliminated discrimination against patients with preexisting conditions, and not by a long shot. Jeanne Balvin’s experience shows Obamacare perpetuates some forms of discrimination against the sick. Colette Briggs’s experience shows Obamacare has repealed other forms and replaced them with “backdoor discrimination” that is arguably worse. President-elect Joe Biden and his choice for Secretary of Health and Human Services, California attorney general Xavier Becerra, strongly support the rules that give rise to these forms of discrimination.
