FixHealthCarePolicy

Do Blue Dogs Want Lower Incomes, Fewer Jobs, and Bad Health Care?

Political scientist Jacob Hacker claims in the Washington Post that the “Blue Dog” Democrats’ opposition to Obama’s “public plan” is not in the interests of their constituents – particularly farmers, ranchers, small business owners, and low- and middle-income workers, who would supposedly benefit from premium assistance and from the cost reductions he claims a Medicare-like public plan for the non-elderly would bring, as well as from the requirement that “all but the smallest of employers make a meaningful contribution to the cost of coverage.”

On the contrary, it is precisely these provisions that would raise health care costs and harm the most economically vulnerable workers and entrepreneurs, while increasing health care costs for everyone. The requirement that “all but the smallest of employers make a meaningful contribution to the cost of coverage” is to be implemented by requiring employers who don’t provide health insurance to pay an 8 percent payroll tax – but the bill specifically states that this tax will NOT be credited toward worker’s premiums, even if they sign up for the public plan. So it won’t do workers any good in terms of providing them with health coverage – plus, as a tax on employment, it will force pay cuts and layoffs on those who can least afford them. It will kill the jobs of middle- and lower-income workers at a time when unemployment is already at historic highs, and do nothing to help those who retain their jobs to pay for health coverage. (more…)

Tags: Jacob Hacker, single-payer health care

Lewin vs. Stark: How Many Americans Will End Up on the Public Plan?

Earlier this week, in conjunction with The Lewin Group, we released an analysis of the House health bill showing that if the public plan component became law:

– Approximately 103 million people would be covered under the new public plan and as a consequence about 83.4 million people would lose their private insurance. This would represent a 48.4 percent reduction in the number of people with private coverage.
– About 88.1 million workers would see their current private, employer-sponsored health plan go away and would be shifted to the public plan.
– Yearly premiums for the typical American with private coverage could go up by as much as $460 per privately insured person, as a result of increased cost-shifting stemming from a public plan modeled on Medicare.

Long-time single payer advocate Rep. Peter Stark (D-CA) has since responded to the Lewin study claiming “The Congressional Budget Office Trumps the Lewin Group.” The Lewin Group now has a point by point rebuttal of Stark. The is the text of the Lewin response, also available here: (more…)

Tags: Lewin Group, Pete Stark, single-payer health care