It's been pretty obvious from the outset that the Trumpcare bill House Speaker Paul Ryan crafted (so he could repeal Obamacare and say he had a replacement) has been less about health care and more about cutting taxes for the wealthy. Not about insuring people. That's not the point of this exercise at all, as Ryan made clear in an interview with conservative radio pundit Hugh Hewitt. Hewitt asked him about the likelihood that the Congressional Budget Office would put the newly uninsured number at 15 million.
But we always know you're never going to win a coverage beauty contest when it's free market versus government mandates.
Making sure people have health insurance, and health care, is just a "beauty contest." And not having health insurance? FREEDOM!!!!! By the way, Obamacare is pretty much still the free market. It's not government policies its customers are buying.
And also, by the way, that's sure not what Ryan was saying in the FAQ about the bill. No, the promise there is that no one will lose insurance. It's right here:
Won’t millions of Americans lose their health insurance because of your plan?
No. We are working to give all Americans peace of mind about their health care. We will have a stable transition toward a system that empowers patients with more choices and lower costs.
Okay, so maybe you won't have insurance. You'll have "peace of mind." But he doesn't care anyway, because this is all just a game. Democrats win the insurance coverage "beauty contest," but rich Republicans win big tax breaks.