During my years covering our troops and veterans and their families for Newsweek, Daily Beast, International Business Times and other publications, I met hundreds of heroic and interesting men and women.
But I was especially enamored with Arizona Sen. John McCain. The Maverick. The Hot Head. The Rebel. I spent quite a lot of time with him, mostly on the phone. It was a bumpy ride, those years. But it was never boring.
I certainly saw the best and worst of McCain. But I simply could not dislike him. The man spent more than 5 years in a hellish North Vietnamese cell during the Vietnam War. He was brave as hell. And smart. And funny.
McCain, who died in 2018 from glioblastoma, a brain cancer that afflicts so many war veterans, loved this country and loved being a Senator. He was a good man and suffered 24/7 emotionally and physically, as so many veterans do.
His Greatest Moment?
McCain had a long and illustrious political career. But perhaps his boldest step as a politician happened in 2008 in the late hours when he simply refused to go with his political party and instead gave the thumbs-down to his fellow Republicans.
This kept the Republican senators from striking down the signature achievement of President Barack Obama, the man who had beaten McCain for the presidency
McCain wasn’t all that enamored with the legislation, actually. But he knew he was doing the right thing. And he will forever be in the debt of millions of people with cancer and other health issues who are now able to get treated despite their pre-existing conditions thanks to the Affordable Care Act.
Call It Obamacare
Known by most as Obamacare, the legislation continues to evolve and work for more Americans, including many people with cancer. The ACA is arguably the best and most successful piece of health legislation ever passed in this country. They keep adding to it. It has rather quietly become an iconic piece of legislation that has touched so many lives.
Based on 2023 and early 2024 enrollment data, more than 45 million people are currently enrolled in Marketplace or Medicaid expansion coverage under provisions of the ACA, the highest total on record.
The ACA has helped reduce the number of people without health insurance and increased access to care for people with cancer, and enhanced premium subsidies could help up to 560,000 non-elderly people with cancer save on health insurance premiums.
The ACA also covers 10 essential health benefits, including mental health and prescription drugs. It also covers young people up to age 26 on their parent’s health plans.
Will Trump Dump the ACA If He Can?
The question now is: Will it survive if former President Trump is elected President? Even Trump knows that there are simply too many Americans signed up for Obamacare for him to scrap it. There would be rioting. It would be very ugly. This is people’s health we are talking about here.
For years Trump says he has been building new legislation to replace Obamacare. But it didn’t happen when he was in office and it appears that it will not happen even if Trump does win the upcoming election.
During the debate with Vice President Kamala Harris, Trump said that he has “concepts of a plan” to replace the ACA and that “you’ll be hearing about it in the not-too-distant future.”
On “Meet the Press,” host Kristen Welker asked JD Vance, Trump’s would-be VP, when Trump’s plan would be ready. He didn’t answer directly but said it would involve “deregulating the insurance market.”
Which leads me to state the obvious: Why fix it if it ain’t broken?
