>>However, the high premiums and deductibles are still a huge problem.

Here's the big issue: the ACA prevents insurers denying coverage or care. No exclusion of pre-existing conditions. No rescission when expensive illnesses develop. That's how it has to be if you want healthcare coverage to be both fair and via insurance. Standard underwriting stuff: e.g. when Christchurch kept having earthquakes, policy costs for everybody in NZ rose. If Christchurch were required to cover the whole cost itself or if earthquakes were excluded, the city would cease to exist. None of us likes the increased premiums and while commonly described as "socialism," this is in fact basic underwriting. It's also what decent people do for each other when the other fellow is down.

So I assume we agree that everybody should have access to affordable healthcare coverage with no exclusions or cancellations.

But for that to work, you also need the dreaded "individual mandate" - a requirement to take insurance- because otherwise people would wait until they get sick to take out a policy if they're guaranteed coverage with no pre-existing exclusions. The insurers would go under.

No exclusions, guaranteed coverage, individual mandate... hmm, where have I heard that before? And which element can be rolled back without reverting to a scheme where healthcare costs were the biggest cause of middle class bankruptcy while millions had no coverage at all?

>> I believe that we can make health insurance a lot more affordable for every one by making 2 simple changes: allow buying health insurance across state lines and tort reform.

Yep, as we've discussed before. But neither will permit rollback of the above provisions. Trump may well look hard at these ideas. Expect to hear a lot more about the Texas experience with tort reform. ;-)

>>This will have to be a discussion left for another day. Let's not ruin our beautiful new relationship :)

I don't like the biased coverage and disrespect meted out to Trump and haven't hesitated to say so. But I've also said all along that I don't like Trump's policy wrt the ACA- even that HRC might be preferable on that point alone. However, by now I think Trump's advisors will see that tackling the ACA is taking a tiger by the tail and I'm hopeful we'll see a "special" sort of rollback or even some sophistry that would make the MSM proud. ;-)