Sometimes no news is good news. The Zaniya Project's draft proposal included a Massachusetts-style mandate for individuals to purchase health insurance (akin to the Clinton 2.0 "Thanks for the contributions, big insurance" plan). Even in draft, the Zaniya task force felt uneasy enough about that mandate to bury it as #14 on its 22-point list.
Perhaps it was the backlash against that particular proposal; perhaps it was Joel Dykstra unable to deal with having his name attached to something Hillary Clinton would support; perhaps it was just a surge of free-market common sense. Whatever the cause, the Zaniya Project Task force final report abandons the insurance mandate. Recommendation #4 (p. 8) calls for encouraging and promoting personal responsibility and creating a work group, but explicitly declares "No specific actions proposed."
Thank goodness: as reported earlier, the individual insurance mandate isn't working in Massachusetts... not unless you're a big hospital or corporation raking in increased profits. Given a choice between bad legislation and no legislation, the Madville Times will take the latter.
The Massachusetts plan isn't working? well if a couple doctors who so-founded a group dedicated to single-payer nationalized health care say so in the fair and balanced Boston Globe it must be true! Stephie Woolhandler doesn't address very much in her article of substance other than attacking the survey used as ignoring some uninsured population. not exactly a condemnation of the effectiveness of the plan. I especially like her quote of unfordable insurance premium for a couple in their late 50s as being a minimum. I found a high deductible plan for a couple in their late 50s at $308/month. If they just set aside the amount they saved in year number one they would have their entire deductible payed and the plan coverage is 100% after that. And she completely misses the point of the Mass plan. Broadening the pool of insured people to include healthy people who don't feel like they need it, will decrease the rates for everyone. We recognize rates are high....that's why this was implemented! Not just to give a freebie to anyone without insurance.
ReplyDeleteThe 2nd article doesn't even judge the Mass plan at all. It just says it isn't comparable to California.
As the 3rd article states, the Mass plan went into effect Effective July 1, 2007. Are you telling me you expect any plan to prove itself in 3 months?
ps. sick of the maligning of high deductibles. low deductibles are foolishly expensive and misapply the purpose of insurance.