Is ObamaCare Killing Americans?

One of the most frequent reasons the Democrats used to justify ObamaCare was that, among all the other wealthiest nations, we were last when it came to life expectancy.  Of course, the logic is simple.  Insure more people, and by doing so, give them greater access to healthcare; and as a result, people will live longer.

Unfortunately, that's not happening.  In the latest report from the CDC, in 2015, the average American's life span declined for the first time in decades. This, despite the fact that, in that year (the second year into ObamaCare), the number of insured fell to a decades low 11.9% versus 18% at the end of 2013.

The CDC report shows that 9 of the top ten reasons for death all showed increases, with cancer being the only bright spot (if you can actually call cancer a bright spot) in the whole report:

"The rate increased 0.9% for heart disease, 2.7% for chronic lower respiratory diseases, 6.7% for unintentional injuries, 3.0% for stroke, 15.7% for Alzheimer’s disease, 1.9% for diabetes, 1.5% for kidney disease, and 2.3% for suicide. The rate decreased by 1.7% for cancer. The rate for influenza and pneumonia did not change significantly."

Most all of the diseases that showed increases are somewhat treatable and should have seen better outcomes with the expansion of heath care access under ObamaCare.  So, what gives?

Well, one might think that it is due to the fact that we are living longer and our population is aging and more susceptible to disease.  But, the report also showed that the death rates for men and women age 65 and older, remained the same.  Instead, it was supposedly, the younger people whose lives were being shortened.  Another reason that researchers blamed the increase on was obesity and the rise of diabetes.  However, that were negated by the fact that the infant mortality rate also went up; and obesity and diabetes are not infant diseases.

In my opinion, this suggests that the quality of care is in decline since ObamaCare went into effect.  In discussions with my own doctors, I hear complaints that ObamaCare has burdened them with hours of paperwork and reporting; resulting in less time spent with each patient.  In fact, in a recent study, the average physician spends 785 hours a year reporting quality measures to the federal government.  That is almost 100 days of work based on an 8 hour workday.

The bottom line is that we may be seeing another reason why ObamaCare isn't working as promised and needs to be replaced.

References:

President Obama’s Health Care Reform Policies: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2697918/

Life Expectancy In U.S. Drops For First Time In Decades, Report Finds: http://www.npr.org/sections/health-shots/2016/12/08/504667607/life-expectancy-in-u-s-drops-for-first-time-in-decades-report-finds

U.S. Uninsured Rate: http://www.gallup.com/poll/190484/uninsured-rate-lowest-eight-year-trend.aspx

CDC: Mortality in the United States, 2015: http://www.cdc.gov/nchs/products/databriefs/db267.htm

Physicians Spend $15.4 Billion Each Year on Reporting Quality Measures: http://www.ajmc.com/newsroom/physicians-spend-154-billion-each-year-on-reporting-quality-measures