Compromise eases health-care transition

By Quad City Times

---

American business has been given a needed reprieve from the imminent deadline to provide health insurance coverage under the Affordable Care Act.

President Obama's decision to yield to legitimate business concerns is being touted by some as acknowledgement of the ACA's failure, strengthening the call for a complete rejection of the law.

Compromise remains unrecognizable in battle-weary Washington.

The president's decision rightfully respects businesses struggling to comply with the ACA requirement that any employer with more than 50 workers provide insurance coverage, or face a stiff fine of $2,000 per worker. The act provides subsidies to help employers and Americans comply with the coverage mandate.

We're heartened to see the president listen, grant the requested delay and get to work on simplifying the rules.

But there's no reason to expect or even want the president to turn back now.

The Affordable Care Act already is bringing wellness – not just treatment – to thousands of Quad-Citians through community clinics built and expanded because of the act. The act already is expediting health professionals' transition to digital data, so that patients' medical records are available when patients need them, not locked up as proprietary information in providers' offices.

This progress has been made even as a useless House of Representatives squanders taxpayer money voting without effect again and again to dismantle the act. The progress comes as state after state balks at provisions to establish online exchanges where Americans can easily compare health insurance products.

These assaults on ACA come as the rate of medical spending growth in America actually is slowing for the first time in decades. The ACA's emphasis on wellness -- not just treatment -- is limiting the double digit percentage growth in health expenses.

Clearly, much needs to be done to bring millions of Americans into the insurance pool, spread out the risks and emphasize more preventative care. If Republican House members and governors focused more on prevention and risk management, perhaps we'd see even bigger savings by now.

Instead, partisan obstruction continues to curtail the health expense reductions essential to American businesses, their workers and customers.

The year-long reprieve gives America's small businesses time to adjust to these big changes. We hope that time is used to enroll more Americans, launch the tax credit subsidies ACA provides to offset the cost to business, and get on with the important job of providing affordable health care to all.