Insurance companies would love to see a Mitt Romney victory in November that would result in the arrival of "Romneycare."
But they'd be equally happy if President Barack Obama is re-elected and his Affordable Care Act remains the law of the land.
In short, the insurance companies will profit either way and are planning accordingly.
But how is this possible?
By extending insurance to millions of people previously without coverage Obamacare will provide insurance companies with millions of new customers, a development that clearly will boost their bottom lines.
Romney has promised to dismantle Obamacare and replace it with his own "Romneycare," but don't mistake this new version for the comprehensive reform plan he signed into law as governor of Massachusetts in 2006.
Romney says his new plan would free up the healthcare markets to increase competition and drive down costs.
But this new incarnation of Romneycare -- perhaps more accurately described as Romneycare 2.0 -- is unlikely to contain healthcare costs and almost certainly will deliver fatter profits to private insurance companies.
"Under [Obamacare] reform, you get market expansion, and that's a good thing" for health companies, Dan Mendelson, the chief executive of Avalere Health, a consultancy told The Wall Street Journal.
"Under Romney, it's going to be like managed-care city," he said.
One thing is clear, however -- neither Obamacare nor Romneycare can stop Americans from getting older and swelling the rolls of government medical plans.
And that will spell huge profits for the companies who manage government programs.
Here's why...
Romneycare
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Romneycare vs. Obamacare: Insurance Companies Win Either Way
Ryancare vs. Obamacare: The Future of Medicare is at Stake
When Mitt Romney named Paul Ryan as his vice-presidential nominee, the Medicare battle jumped to the front and center of election 2012.
First introduced in 2010, "The Ryan Budget" is a bold plan that attempts to reduce the deficit by drastically cutting spending-which some claim will "cripple" Medicare.
So what is the truth?....
In Ryan's plan, new enrollees after 2022 would have to choose between a private insurance plan and Medicare, making Medicare the "public option" that was so opposed in Obamacare.
Ryan's plan gives Medicare enrollees vouchers to choose from competing private insurance plans offered on a Medicare exchange. These exchanges closely resemble the exchanges in Obamacare that some Republican governors have refused to participate in.
And both plans basically "cut" the program by over $700 billion and set a growth cap on Medicare spending at GDP levels plus 0.5%.
The difference in the plans is how these cuts are made and why.
As Ezra Klein of the Washington Post says, "Democrats believe the best way to reform Medicare is to leave the program intact but vastly strengthen its ability to pay for quality. Republicans believe the best way to reform Medicare is to fracture the system between private plans and traditional Medicare and let competition do its work."
The only problem is that neither of these plans may do enough to fix Medicare.
The biggest misconception with Ryan's plan is that current senior citizens will be faced with outrageous healthcare costs.
That is simply not true.
First introduced in 2010, "The Ryan Budget" is a bold plan that attempts to reduce the deficit by drastically cutting spending-which some claim will "cripple" Medicare.
So what is the truth?....
Ryancare vs Obamacare
Though the plans differ in ideology, Obamacare and Ryancare actually have some similarities.In Ryan's plan, new enrollees after 2022 would have to choose between a private insurance plan and Medicare, making Medicare the "public option" that was so opposed in Obamacare.
Ryan's plan gives Medicare enrollees vouchers to choose from competing private insurance plans offered on a Medicare exchange. These exchanges closely resemble the exchanges in Obamacare that some Republican governors have refused to participate in.
And both plans basically "cut" the program by over $700 billion and set a growth cap on Medicare spending at GDP levels plus 0.5%.
The difference in the plans is how these cuts are made and why.
As Ezra Klein of the Washington Post says, "Democrats believe the best way to reform Medicare is to leave the program intact but vastly strengthen its ability to pay for quality. Republicans believe the best way to reform Medicare is to fracture the system between private plans and traditional Medicare and let competition do its work."
The only problem is that neither of these plans may do enough to fix Medicare.
The biggest misconception with Ryan's plan is that current senior citizens will be faced with outrageous healthcare costs.
That is simply not true.
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