Debate: Will Obama recover from the absolute mess he has created as president of the US?
Side: Great President

I'm going to give your arguments my full attention and give you the responses I assume you were looking for (well, you probably just wanted me to agree with you... but whatever).I did expect a concession, but I certainly prefer a good argument (this is a debate site after all) - it's the in-between that sucks.1) Health Care ReformSaying it's going to be a good thing takes a certain amount of faith, as does saying it will be a bad thing. Indeed; ObamaCare could save the life of the next Hitler, etc. All we can really do is a rough cost benefit analysis, in conjunction with showing how the old system wasn't doing us many favors.Why change was necessary:> 50 million uninsured ref> medical debt was the number one reason behind bankruptcy filings even though three quarters of those were insured when their medical problems began ref> Costs of the uninsured passed along to the insured ref> Life expectancy in the United States used to be 1.5 years above the OECD average, now it's 1.4 years below the OECD average of 80.1 years ref> Infant mortality, deaths per 1,000 live births, is 6.1 in the US, 2 more than the OECD average of 4.1 ref> Health spending in the U.S. was about 90% higher than in many other industrialized countries. ref> The United States spends more than two-and-a-half times the OECD per-capita average ref> fewer physicians per person than in most other OECD countries ref> Lack of portability reduces workforce mobility and inhibits the economy ref> Insured employees are healthier, more productive, and miss fewer days of work ref> Children with poor health care have higher levels of school absence, get lower grades, and have decreased future economic potential refMy stance is that I'd rather not take the risk and I don't like socialized healthcare. what will happen when they take over our healthcare!?ObamaCare is far from 'socialized healthcare'. Many liberals were pushing for a single-payer system (i.e. Medicare-for-all), but not only did that not happen, there isn't even one possible government-run plan that a person can choose from (the so-called public option). ObamaCare basically sets the legal boundaries for private insurance and then allows them to compete and is largely based on prior Republican ideas.Heritage Foundation recommends Insurance Mandate (page 8 of pdf, labeled as page 6)Obamacare isn't projected to make any significant reductions to the deficit until the long run (about ten years from now).If we assume that the cost is negligible in the first 10 years and that it is mainly to save money in the long run,1) isn't it refreshing to have someone finally focused on the long term instead of political expediency2) if the net cost is negligible and we measure that against the following improvements, wouldn't it be fairly positive on balance?(Largely from http://kff.org/interactive/implementation-timeline/) )> Eliminates denial of coverage based on pre-existing conditions> Eliminates annual and lifetime insurance caps> Eliminates the practice of collecting premiums until someone gets sick and then rescinding their coverage> Limits cost variation to specific factors: age (limited to a 3 to 1 ratio), geographic area, family composition, and tobacco use (limited to 1.5. to 1 ratio)> Allows free (no co-pay) access to preventative procedures (colonoscopies, mammograms, immunizations, etc.)> Allows children to stay on their parents insurance until age 26> Extends authorization and funding for the Children’s Health Insurance Program (CHIP) through 2015> Allows Medicaid coverage for people with incomes up to 138% of poverty level> Provides Premium subsidies for families with incomes between 133-400% of federal poverty level> Closes the Medicare Part-D donut hole over time> Increased access to home care ref> Insurance cannot use more than 20% of premiums for overhead in the individual and small group markets and 15% for plans in the large group market> Creates tax cuts for small businesses that contribute to health insurance plans for their employees ref> Tax credits and Grants for research towards curing cancer within 30 years: ref> Funds research comparing the clinical effectiveness of medical treatments - will serve as a repository for best-practices.> Facilitates a drastic increase in the number of medical care professionals: primary care doctors, nurses, assistants, home-care aides, etc. ref> Grants to States to incentivize Medicaid enrollees to participate in comprehensive health lifestyle programs> Grants to small employers that establish wellness programs.> Grants to States to develop, implement, and evaluate alternatives to current tort litigations.> Provides incentives to accountable care organizations save money for Medicare programs> Reduces payments for some hospital re-admissions> Requires disclosure of financial relationships between health entities, including physicians, hospitals, pharmacists, other providers, and manufacturers and distributors of covered drugs, devices, biologicals, and medical supplies.> Authorizes the Food and Drug Administration to approve generic versions of biologic drugs after 12 years> Creates the Consumer Operated and Oriented Plan (CO-OP) to foster the creation of non-profit, member-run health insurance companies.http://kff.org/interactive/implementation-timeline/ I guess we're just going to have to wait and see...Some of the early indications are pretty positive:Health care cost inflation is rising at its slowest pace in a half century (1%) and is now lower than overall inflation, which itself has been historically slow in recent years. refAnd ObamaCare appears to be a substantive part of what is bending the curve ref