el_duderino87

"mmmm sit on my face"

Where did the idea for the J.P. character in Grandma's Boy come from? I think I may know that guy in real life.

Side question: Can I challenge you to a game of Frogs and Flies?

People also really, really like not being charged more ... for a 'pre-existing condition'

Yes, they may like that, but that isn't insurance. Insurance is about someone willing to pay for your expenses in case something bad happens to them. On the insurer's side, they have to assess risk of individuals and how likely they are to pay out a claim. Unfortunately, people with pre-existing conditions are much more likely to require future expenses. That is the harsh reality of life. So, the insurer requires a higher premium to protect these riskier patients. This is the same as auto-insurance. Those with a history of accidents and tickets are deemed more risky, thus are charged more to insure. The ACA is not insurance in this manner, and because of such, the young and healthy are subsidizing the old and sick. In an attempt to cover the old and sick, the ACA in effect ruins the whole system. A much better approach would be to let the health insurance market act like insurance, where relative risk is a factor in premiums. Those that are truly sick should be covered by welfare programs like Medicare, like they are when in End Stage Renal Disease, or through private charities. We should also focus on eliminating the barriers to entry in the pharma business, so that new, life-savings drugs have an easier time making it to the market.