Dems come to ObamaCare’s defense after premium hikes

Democrats came to the defense of ObamaCare on Tuesday, amid Republican attacks over premium increases. 

White House Press Secretary Josh Earnest and former President Bill Clinton both stood up for the healthcare law, while also noting there are areas that need to be fixed. 

{mosads}Democratic presidential nominee Hillary Clinton, however, did not mention ObamaCare at her only scheduled campaign rally of the day, choosing not to address the issue as she stumped in Coconut Creek, Fla. 

Republicans have been attacking the administration since its Monday announcement that the benchmark ObamaCare premium will increase an average of 25 percent for 2017. 

But Earnest pointed out that the vast majority of ObamaCare enrollees receive financial assistance to shield them from the effect of such increases, and he said about 7 in 10 people will still be able to find a plan for $75 or less a month. 

“That’s a good deal, that’s about the cost of a cell phone bill,” Earnest said, according to a pool report. “That’s a particularly good deal when you consider what options were available to individuals on the individual market before” ObamaCare. 

Democrats often tout the fact the healthcare law prevents insurance companies from withholding coverage from people with preexisting conditions who previously could not get coverage at any price. 

Bill Clinton sounded a similar theme during a campaign stop on behalf of his wife in North Carolina. 

“All of the headlines are full of the stories that average premiums are going up 22 percent, but the subheadline is if you’re in the healthcare program, your subsidies will go up too, so the increases won’t be as much,” he said. 

He noted that 20 million people have gained coverage under the law. 

“You’ve got one proposal [from] her opponent, just repeal it and go back to the way it used to be,” he said. “That’s a terrible idea. More than 20 million people would lose their health insurance.”

But the former president, who caused a firestorm earlier this month when he called Obamacare “the craziest thing in the world,” also said there are areas that need to be fixed.

He pointed to Hillary Clinton’s proposals to add a public option to increase competition among insurers and to let people 55 and over buy into Medicare.

The Democratic nominee and President Obama have both called for increasing financial assistance to make health insurance more affordable. 

Insurers have been facing a smaller and sicker group of ObamaCare enrollees than they expected, causing the need to hike premiums to try to stop losing money. The administration says this year is a “transition” and the market will stabilize the year after. 

Those insurer exits have left more people with just one ObamaCare option. 

“Twenty percent of Americans today only have one choice, and that’s not good,” Bill Clinton said. 

Democrats also point out that most people, about 150 million Americans, get insurance through their jobs and are largely unaffected. The premium hikes mostly affect the 10 million people on ObamaCare. 

Bill Clinton summed up the message on ObamaCare: “Hillary says fix the problem; don’t repeal the solution.