If there has been any doubt that Buzzfeed is the new Politico, an article in today's edition by (ex-Politico guy) Ben Smith should dispel it. As reported by Steve Benen in the Maddow Blog, Smith has discovered actuarial science, and reached the brilliant conclusion that suddenly, Obama is "screwing" his loyal young voters because they will have to buy insurance under the ACA.
Smith acknowledges that young people up to 26 are benefiting from their parents insurance under the ACA, but when the mandate kicks in, they will be "screwed" because they have to buy insurance or pay a penalty. But as Benen states:
It's pretty straightforward when you think about it: on average, as people age, they're not as healthy. It's just an unpleasant fact of life: the older we get, the better the chances we'll need a doctor.
For Ben Smith, that means young people are getting screwed by the president they helped elect: that rascal in the White House is forcing those young people -- the folks Obama brought health care coverage to -- to pay into a system that they probably won't need as much as their older counterparts.
Gasp!
You mean, just like Medicare and Social Security, those kids have to pay when they likely won't get the benefits until the future. The horror. Of course, there is a substantially greater chance hat the young will benefit from the ACA earlier than they will from the other programs because . . . . many people get sick before they are 65! or even before 40! or 30!
Smith's "screwed" article also neglects to consider that young people may have some foresight into the years when they will more likely need coverage; that young people might care about their parents and grandparents and that (and this is really hard to believe) young people may understand how insurance works and why the mandate is necessary to provide coverage for pre-existing conditions and other currently uncovered things (like birth control).
Ben Smith either thinks young people are as dumb as he is and/or is desperate to get interviewed on Fox and linked on Drudge. I bet on both.