When people are referring to an "emperor with no clothes" scenario, they mean that other people are being suck-up toadies and are collectively denying the truth of the situation. So it takes one person with the guts (or naivete) to speak the truth and blast through the BULLSHIT.
Senator Cruz represents the (insane) Tea Party faction of the fading Republican party that has no realistic alternative to the ACA.
At one time the Republicans championed Repeal & Replace. Recently their sole obsession has been Repeal.
Some fundamentals of the ACA derive from the well-known Heritage Foundation ideas. In October 1989, Heritage published the Stuart Butler Study Assuring Affordable Healthcare for All Americans "[N]either the federal government nor any state requires all households to protect themselves from the potentially catastrophic costs of a serious accident or illness. Under the Heritage plan, there would be such a requirement...Society does feel a moral obligation to insure that its citizens do not suffer from the unavailability of health care. But on the other hand, each household has the obligation, to the extent it is able, to avoid placing demands on society by protecting itself...A mandate on households certainly would force those with adequate means to obtain insurance protection." In March 1992 Heritage published Butler's The Heritage Consumer Choice Health Plan."Step #2: Require all households to purchase at least a basic package of insurance, unless they are covered by Medicaid, Medicare, or other government health programs. All Heads of households would be required by law to obtain at least a basic health plan specified by Congress...The private insurance market would be reformed to make a standard basic package available to all at an acceptable price...Employers would be required to make a payroll deduction each pay period, at the direction of the employee, and send the amount to the plan of the employee's choice."
Please refer to this excellent link for History of the Individual Health Insurance Mandate.
http://healthcarereform.procon.org/...
The House Republican Study Committee released a weak alternative plan in September 2013. Nothing new here, just the same tired talking points. Of course it begins by repealing the ACA. It expands tax deductions for the privileged and wealthy. Income and payroll tax deductions would be available to individuals ($7,500) and families ($20,000) for health coverage. No tax credits here, just deductions that only really benefit the upper middle class and above. No premium assistance or Medicaid assistance for anybody, especially the lower income groups helped by the ACA premium supports. Insurance plans could be sold across state lines. Medical malpractice laws would be reformed to reduce doctors' risk of litigation, and of course that will barely make a dent in medical expenses. The federal government would pump $25 billion over 10 years into state high-risk pools for people with preexisting conditions. Nothing said about prohibiting carriers from such practices, so it's back to the same old shit.
No surprise that the Repugs have not attempted to publicize this cynical and morbid alternative to the ACA. Unless the Republicans can provide a realistic alternative to the ACA, they will be increasingly talking to their Echo chamber.
The ACA will provide for: Elimination of pre-existing conditions, kids allowed to be on their parents' insurance until age 26, coverage without cost for preventative healthcare, expansion of Medicaid for states willing to accept billions of dollars from the federal government, and the insurance exchanges.
The ACA rollout issues will be worked out in time. I disagree with Ezra Klein and others who are making this so negative.
Americans deserve health care as right and not a privilege. It must be universal. It must not exclude pre-existing conditions. All citizens must accept the individual responsibility of health care coverage as a duty of citizenship in exchange for guaranteed coverage.
How about a genuine Replacement for the ACA, before you Repeal it and send us back to the pre-ACA healthcare hell, Emperor Cruz?
How about a jobs stimulus plan, Emperor Cruz?