| Krugman considers the Baucus legislation "better than many of us expected," but, "as it stands...unworkable and unacceptable."
Here's what Krugman thinks needs fixing:
- The employer mandate, in which he ties "each employer's fees to the subsidies its own employees end up getting." (This is the free-rider provision Ezra Klein loathes.])
- Subsidies. Too low for middle-class families. Sure, the bill scores better with the CBO, but those families pick up the extra tab, and the CBO don't score that.
- No public option.
It's dang similar to Klein's five ways to improve the bill:
- Kill the free-rider provision.
- More subsidies.
- "Phase in Ron Wyden's "Free Choice Amendment," which would throw open the health insurance exchange to all. Baucus plan takes to long to open exchange.
- "Create competition in the market." Public option?
- "Create incentives for bipartisanship" by allowing his committee Democrats to add progressive amendments.
Frankly, the more I look at this thing, the more it's obvious we need both a public option and to open the health insurance exchange to everyone. If you want a better analysis of this bill, got to Jay Rockefeller, who says this is what's wrong with the bill:
- CHIP is put into the exchange.
- No public option.
- Already existing policies from big companies not affected by new regulations. You read that right! Almost half of the nation's consumers will have no protection from pre-existing condition clauses or lifetime caps!
- Affordability.
See, that's the thing. If you have crappy, employer-provided insurance, you have to keep it. As Baucus' bill is written now, you can't ditch it for something better in the exchange. That's unacceptable.
Anyway. Still reading this thing. |
