Steve Forbes lays out the obvious truth Washington refuses to admit: the healthcare crisis is the product of too much government, too many middlemen and too little choice, and Congressional Republicans can fix it if they choose freedom over fear. Forbes argues that market-driven solutions — not new mandates or expanded entitlements — are the quickest, most humane route to lower costs and better care for everyday Americans.
First, Republicans should stop apologizing and offer concrete, popular reforms: open the Federal Employees Health Benefits program to everyone, expand Health Savings Accounts, and force real price transparency so consumers can comparison-shop like they do for every other big purchase. These are not ideological pipe dreams; they are practical policies that empower patients, cut out bloated administrative waste, and restore competition to a system strangled by bureaucracy.
Medicaid must be rethought with dignity and responsibility in mind — not defended as an ever-growing cash cow for politicians and special interests. Work requirements for able-bodied adults, eliminating state gaming of federal matches, and moving to block grants that let states innovate would protect the vulnerable while stopping the program’s fiscal collapse. Republicans who champion these commonsense fixes will be doing right by taxpayers and by recipients who deserve timely, quality care.
Politically, the stakes are clear: Democrats have successfully painted Republicans as uncaring on healthcare by offering fear and dependency as the only answer, but a bold, optimistic GOP plan can turn that narrative on its head. Steve Forbes and other conservative leaders note that embracing pro-growth, pro-choice health reforms gives Republicans a winning message that resonates with working families worried about bills and access — not abstract ideological battles. If Republicans sell solutions instead of scare tactics, voters will listen.
Washington’s short-termism is on display in competing proposals on Capitol Hill: Democrats push to extend costly ACA subsidies while some Senate Republicans are proposing limited HSA-focused alternatives that avoid more permanent entitlement expansion. The choice for the GOP is between jagged, half-measures that mimic Democrats and a unified, market-oriented platform that reduces costs without surrendering fiscal sanity. Voters will reward those who offer real relief instead of political theater.
Enough with surrendering the language of compassion to the left. Conservatives must own the moral argument that empowering people with money, choice and accountability is the kindest policy of all — it treats Americans like adults, not wards of the state. Stand for competition, transparency and patient control, and watch Democrats’ fear-based messaging crumble under the weight of common-sense results.
Now is the moment for Congressional Republicans to act with urgency and conviction: craft a clear package that expands FEHB access, strengthens HSAs and HRAs, demands price transparency, reforms Medicaid, and curbs abusive middlemen practices. Deliver those policies with a message of prosperity, dignity and freedom, and Republicans won’t just win the argument — they’ll win elections and restore real healthcare for hardworking Americans.
