The Obamacare 'scandal' you haven't heard about
November 8th, 2013
10:01 AM ET

The Obamacare 'scandal' you haven't heard about

By John Blake, CNN














CNN's Sanjay Gupta explains who falls into the coverage gap

Who speaks for the poor in the coverage gap?





The list goes on.












“It absolutely stinks”








Why pastors should stay silent about the coverage gap


Two prominent evangelical pastors openly wrestled with those questions.


















Why pastors should speak out






















Several days later, she returned with Keller’s answer.

He had no comment. 

- CNN Writer


soundoff (3,619 Responses)
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    December 21, 2013 at 8:39 pm |
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    December 21, 2013 at 8:37 pm |
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    December 21, 2013 at 8:37 pm |
  4. Rich Bucci

    I have been reading some of the most ridiculous comments ever. Imagine blaming the church for healthcare.maybe we should blame Muslims for healthcare, oops sorry we can only blame Christians since the Oval Office is Muslim. That would be racist but let's blame conservatives only. Get real, waste caused all this, Obama care is a means to tax us plan and simple, thanks to the Supreme Court. Obama will slow take take and take some more to fund this disaster. It called tax and spend, usually that was a republican theme but you democrats are taking the ball and running with it.

    December 21, 2013 at 5:20 pm |
    • John S.

      Rich, should I call you an idiot or what? You are so misled that it is a shame. God help you! I pray you don't lose your soul because you are on you way, dude.

      December 21, 2013 at 8:42 pm |
      • Rich Bucci

        Who is the idiot, me , I think not. Oh your probably one of those MSNBC viewers that think every word Obama says is gospel. Or are you one of those hard working people at Arby's and mcdonalds that think they should get $15 an hour without earning an education. No don't tell me one of those democrats that blame everyone and don't except responsibility, they have a good teacher. You really think the church is responsible for the healthcare problems.

        December 21, 2013 at 9:42 pm |
  5. Erik

    Baptist ministers are guardians of the status quo in the South. They are not going to jeopardize their revenue sources, conservative evangelicals and Republicans, by taking a position in favor of Medicaid expansion and the Affordable Care Act. Southerners have the shortest life expectancy in the country and it will continue with the reactionary politics of the religious right. Their convoluted defense in defense of the health policy status quo, which entails no health insurance for millions, is appalling, hyprocritical, and frankly, revolting.

    December 21, 2013 at 4:55 pm |
  6. Terry G

    Big time preachers are interested in one thing and it sure ain't the poor. $$$$$$$

    December 21, 2013 at 11:18 am |
  7. Paula

    Churches are part of the reason (not all) our healthcare is in this mess. Healthcare has turned from an outreach (non-profit) event to a profit event over the last few decades. Instead of taking care of the needy at home, the churches are busy building bigger buildings, buying private jets for pastors, sending money overseas (at least this latter may be somewhat charitable–but charity begins at home). Now our hospitals are run by corporations that charge $200 for a pregnancy test that you can get at a $1 store before giving a $7K CAT scan to rule out appendicitis instead of the cheaper alternatives.

    Insurance companies are another problem. Instead of pooling money together for future losses like insurance was originally designed to do, the insurance companies are out to make money and limit coverage for anyone that might pose a risk. (This is one thing I do like about Obamacare - if not the only thing.)

    Also, are the US citizens funding all research for the world? Just wondering why pharmaceuticals in this country are so much higher than other countries. Also, what happens to all of the Race for Life and other charitable contributions for research? Seems like little to no progress occurs with those funds. However, when a break-through finally emerges, the people that provide charitable contributions in this country then get to pay an arm and a leg to actually use the new medicine or device. So we fund the research for corporations and then get to pay for the results, again, with a profit margin? Big scam.

    Oh, and let's not forget about the fraud. The gov't has already proven it is not a good steward of our tax dollars with multi-million dollar fraud cases popping up around the country. Let's not even mention the fact that most of these cases should have been easily determinable if ANY internal controls were in place like most companies would have if they were shelling out trillions to service providers.

    Until we get controls around the supply side, throwing money won't help. That's my problem with Obamacare.

    December 21, 2013 at 10:32 am |
  8. Ivar

    ok. By all accounts, Jesus preached in the open, didn't own a house, much less a huge, money guzzling, high tech mega church, If the message is the important, why all this money stuff? Wouldn't all that help so many who need it?

    December 20, 2013 at 6:48 pm |
  9. chosenbygrace

    "The bespectacled Baptist minister was not confessing to a scandalous love affair or the theft of church funds."

    There all "fundies" are bad and racist... dur.


    So first bash all pastors, as if Catholics who admit to being chronic sinners don't exist anymore, weird, crazy, insane, then claim he brought up something bad, that being that the leaders of their states, and who knows how many under them, rejected retardcare? And yes, it is retarded, see that word, RETARED. 1. You have to complete a PHYSICAL form after signing up online, RETARDED THINK PEOPLE, WHY ARE WE STILL USING PAPER? WHAT YEAR IS THIS, MEANING WHAT IS OUR LEVEL OF TECH? AND THE GOV STILL WANTS US TO USE PAPER, MEANWHILE WANTS TO BASH OUR WALLETS WITH CARBON CRAP? SHUT UP LIBERALS! 2. The stupid obamacare site recognizes some are homeless, make that a million or more, BUT STILL TELLS THEM TO WAIT FOR A FORM IN THE MAIL! 3. WHY DIDN'T OBAMA REPEAL THE 5 YEAR "PROVE YOUR STILL DISABLED OR HAVE YOUR INCOME CUT IN HALF" RULE? OR WHY NOT IMPROVE IT? Why didn't he or his staff recognize that some people are probably going to be disabled for much longer, and that those struggling with chronic homelessness and depression and fatigue will stay that way especially in this economy? COMMON SENSE. But no: instead keep the same old same old dumbness while making it worse. 4. Why is there a less than one year limit on how long you can recover withheld disability pay (and why is there a time limit on child abuse, but not murder?), what an arbitrary bunch of evil people we have for a government.

    As for the world, liberals, atheists, non-Christians, anti-Christians bashing pastors like all are the same, the typical baby brained, "you Christians" babble like from Gandhi's feces and urine obsessed mouth: how about remember what Jesus said, "YOU HYPOCRITE, FIRST GET THE LOG OUT OF YOUR OWN EYE, THEN YOU CAN JUDGE". So much for that verse you all love to pull out, "Do not judge" you hypocrites.

    December 20, 2013 at 2:39 pm |
  10. Richard Bucci

    Obama care is going to tax us hard working people, middle class to death so we can pay for the poor, so they can have free abortions and free Heath care. Get a job like the rest of us, get an education and maybe good things might happen. I'm sorry you poor want free handouts from the govt and think this world owes you something. It doesn't stop the poor from 55 inch flat screen tv's or tattoos or cigaretts, those cost money. No you don't deserve getting 15$ an hour to work at Arby's or mcdonalds. The crazy thing is it all doesn't matter, you can't afford health insurance, you can still go to a hospital and you won't get turned away, not like your going to pay for it anyway. Illegals can do the same thing. It just doesn't make sense, pay 200 to 300 per month of health insurance you don't need or want, or pay a 95$ fine at the end of the year. Let's sum that up... $3600 or $95 wow no brainer here and if your illegal you get free insurance anyway. Omg but you want me and millions of Americans to pay so they don't have too. Pardon the expression " BITE ME"

    December 20, 2013 at 2:29 pm |
  11. Sue

    The problem with this is that one has to forcefully take other people's money to make it work. That is unbiblical. Jesus did not stop the rich young ruler and force him to give away his goods. We should, help each other, willingly, not by force,

    December 20, 2013 at 2:07 pm |
  12. Don

    If Andy Stanley, and other influential pastors, would put their voice and time behind church sponsored low cost clinics and hospitals, then I could accept them being against government involvement. The social Gospel came about due to all the "Christians" who don't care about social justice. The government is not stealing this responsibility from the church; it is filling a vacuum left by the church abdicating it's responsibility.

    December 20, 2013 at 2:05 pm |
  13. hfranqui

    Oh, so churches have the resources to pay for all of those who can't afford healthcare? Really? Is that why since the cuts on social services started under Bush churches from all denominations (those that care about the poor like Jesus- and not in making money) have been denouncing that they can't foot the bill? The role of the church is to take care of the soul not the body- check your bible if you ever red it.

    December 20, 2013 at 12:59 pm |
  14. rl

    Who does this surprise? In all of my years on earth, I have yet to see too, and especially southern pastors, who really cared about their flock. They are way too busy trying to save the rest of us and thump the Bible about gays, helping the wealthy, and waging the war on women, among other things.

    December 20, 2013 at 11:30 am |
    • Colorado

      Prime example of why we should start taxing churches

      December 20, 2013 at 12:34 pm |
  15. Oakspar77777

    Caring for the poor and the sick is the business of the Church. Any pastor who is arguing that the Church should support the government usurping their work is a fraud. Will they advocate for the government witnessing to the lost, distributing communion, or doing the other tasks of the Church next?

    December 20, 2013 at 11:12 am |
    • Tracy Marshall

      Agreed. The problem I saw since this article came out was that is author is basically saying, "the church is not saying anything about health insurance and therefore it's a scandal" while at the same time churches are feeding the poor and sick directly. Then, he puts a bunch of pictures of prosperity-oriented preachers. Wow. Slick. Now let me now bring some clarity to this: The people within groups like Democrats, Republicans and all religions each have no monopoly on stupidity and greed. But the author pulls himself into that category by inventing a straw-man issue that does't really exist all for the sake of driving traffic to CNN. You know this to true.

      December 20, 2013 at 11:29 am |
    • hfranqui


      December 20, 2013 at 12:59 pm |
  16. Pastor

    Right of wrong? That's all that matters. Not practical or impractical according to our puny eyed perceptions. Not pragmatism. Righteousness or wrong.

    Wages is biblically right. “I do not see any biblical precedent where Jesus ever went to Herod or Pilate and said you should be taking care of the poor,” Wages says. “Jesus told his disciples to take care of the poor and the apostles said the same thing to the early church.” I am a pastor, a theologian. I've studied the Bible, God's Word for over 30+ yrs. As a counselor at a women's half way house who contracted for the DOC in AZ my secular boss told me very truly, "Scott, this place shouldn't need to exist. If the church did it's job we wouldn't have to be here." She was right! So is Wages.

    You can round up all the liberal, religious liberals are still liberals and more liberal than religious and they can all cry 'Foul!' But they are wrong. "Wages’ position is impractical and unbiblical, says Ronald Sider, a longtime advocate for the poor and author of “The Scandal of Evangelical Politics.""

    Well la de dah. A liberal grinding his ax. Grind away Sider. Wages knows all too well the truth isn't popular. You all DO know it was for the truth that Jesus was crucified right? Right or wrong? Wages is right. Sider can grab an apple while he grinds his liberal ax. I'll take my 'wages' over apple 'sider.'

    December 20, 2013 at 12:15 am |
  17. RandyC

    This is a lot of words to say nothing. Every State has been stained by this unaffordable law, and every individual has been made poorer because of it.

    December 19, 2013 at 8:35 pm |
  18. lol??

    Your comment is awaiting moderation.
    The educratists are gonna do all they can to encourage divorce so as to maintain their lifestyle. Judges say they can't make a married man pay for college for the kids but Katy bar the door for the divorced men. This is a new-found power for the women to bully their hubbies and is antichrist. Did Hagar get half of Abe's castle??

    December 19, 2013 at 11:53 am |
  19. Sternberg

    Religious people should not lie. No state has refused Obamacare. Most states have refuse the new Medicare provisions because they literally cannot afford what it will begin to cost them in 3 years. What other government program ever came with a teaser introductory rate?
    Those who could not afford Obamacare before, still cannot afford Obamacare, just now they will be fined for it. Those who could afford Obamacare now have to pay more , for a much higher deductible. How does that make anything more affordable for them?

    December 18, 2013 at 6:01 pm |
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