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You're saying the republicans stopped the democrats from even coming up with something better?
The GOP controls the thoughts of the democrats?
As I pointed out earlier on another thread....
More than $1.1 billion was spent on lobbying the initial version of the bill in 2009, according to an OpenSecrets report. In the lead-up to the bill's passage, there were more than 1,500 individual clients"including defense contractors, labor unions, ideological organizations and corporations"contracted with lobbyists to influence the bill's ultimate design.
The healthcare industry spent more than $270 million on lobbying in 2009, which exceeded its own spending record up to that point. On average, the pharmaceutical industry spent a stunning $1.2 million on lobbying each day Congress convened during the first three months of 2009.
Industry giants including the Pharmaceutical Researchers and Manufacturers of America, the American Medical Association and the Partnership for America's Healthcare Future all supported the ACA, but pushed lawmakers to pass the legislation on their terms.
The groups argued that establishing a government-run insurance provider " often referred to as a "public option" " or giving the government the power to negotiate drug prices would hurt private insurers, hospitals and drug makers. The industry's massive lobbying investment paid off: The version of the bill that ultimately passed in 2010 did not include a framework for publicly-provisioned insurance.
The ACA passed without support from a single Republican. Conservatives argued the legislation would undermine free market principles and raise taxes on the rich, and the GOP's opposition to Obamacare didn't dissipate after the bill became law.
www.opensecrets.org
