I’m a bit embarrased to admit that I wasn’t sure wether the ”doc fix” reducing the reimbursement for doctors who treat Medicare patients (around 21%) was built into the CBO savings projections for the recently passed Affordable Care Act.
However, Jonathan Chait in his article “The Conservative Misinformation Feedback Loop, Cont’d” disproves this claim and explains the “degree to which the public debate is driven by pure hacks.”
From Nate Silver:
Baucus’s bill will not contain an employer mandate — a requirement that employers provide health insurance to their employees — even though it does contain an individual mandate.
Does this look familiar to anyone?
– No employer mandate
– No public option
– But yes, an individual mandate
It should — because this particular permutation on health care reform looks an awful lot like the incomplete draft of the HELP Committee’s bill that the CBO scored last month, which also lacked an employer mandate and a public option but contained an individual mandate. That bill, the CBO estimated, would cost about $1.0 trillion — but would only cover a net of about 16 million people. In contrast, the revised version of the HELP Committee’s bill, which did include both a public option and an employer mandate, would cost about the same amount but cover a net of 37 million people.
…
Baucus’s bill makes a different trade-off. In order to placate business interests on the employer mandate, and what are frankly ideological interests on the public option, it sacrifices coverage. If I’m reading this right, in fact, 16 million might be on the high end in terms of the net gain in coverage. That’s because whereas the HELP Committee’s unfinished draft subsidized insurance at up to 500 percent of the poverty line (meaning $54,150 for an individual or $110,250 for a family of four), the assistance in Baucus’s draft would end for people making more than 300 percent of poverty ($32,490 for an individual or $66,150 for a four-person family).
The AP may be right that Baucus’s bill will cost less than $1 trillion, but it accomplishes that by shifting the burden to middle-income families, some of whom have poor balance sheets and will face a really tough choice between paying for health insurance they can’t quite afford and facing some kind of penalty.
…
This is a pretty poor combination of attributes for a health care reform bill to have. If Baucus & Co. wanted to get the cost below $1 trillion, they could have chopped the subsidies down to, say, 350 percent of poverty, while keeping the employer mandate and the public option.
Obama Demands: The Bill I Sign Must Include Public Option – “[A]ny plan I sign must include an insurance exchange: a one-stop shopping marketplace where you can compare the benefits, cost and track records of a variety of plans – including a public option to increase competition and keep insurance companies honest – and choose what’s best for your family.”
White House Plans to Use DeMint’s “Waterloo” Quote to Rally the Troops – Sen. Jim DeMint, R-S.C., said, as Ben Smith at Politico reported, “If we’re able to stop Obama on this, it will be his Waterloo. It will break him.”
Orszag: Republicans Trying To Kill Health Care Reform Through Delay – “There are those that are advocating delay just as a desperation move to try and kill this.”
Subprime Brokers Resurface as Dubious Loan Fixers – FedMod is but one example of how many of the same people who dispensed risky mortgages during the real estate bubble have reconstituted themselves into a new industry focused on selling loan modifications.
From Bill Moyers Journal:
“With almost 20 years inside the health insurance industry, Wendell Potter saw for-profit insurers hijack our health care system and put profits before patients. Now, he speaks with Bill Moyers about how those companies are standing in the way of health care reform.”
[Watch:]
Obama, Medvedev Agree To Cut Nuclear Arms – President Barack Obama and Russian President Dmitry Medvedev struck a preliminary deal Monday to reduce their nations’ stockpiles of nuclear warheads to as few as 1,500 each, aiming toward the lowest levels of any U.S.-Russia arms control agreement.
McNamara dies, career haunted by Vietnam war – Former Defense Secretary Robert McNamara died on Monday aged 93. He will be remembered most as the leading architect of America’s involvement in the Vietnam War.
China says 140 dead in Xinjiang unrest – Around 140 people were killed in a riot in Urumqi, the capital of China’s western-most region of Xinjiang, state media and local reports said on Monday, as the Beijing government faced the most severe unrest in ethnic minority areas since the rioting in Tibet last March.
Palin dashed her chances of winning the 2012 nomination – Forget about Sarah Palin as the Republican presidential candidate in 2012 and probably ever. She may have no interest in seeking the GOP nomination. But if she does, her chances of winning the nomination have been minimized by her decision to resign as governor of Alaska. She’s knocked out one of three legs of the presidential stool and a second one is wobbly.
Legal Bills Swayed Palin, Official Says – Lt. Gov. Sean Parnell of Alaska said Sunday that Gov. Sarah Palin’s decision to resign was largely prompted by the personal legal costs of the ethics investigations against her.
Iranian Guards Issue Warning as Vote Errors Are Admitted – More than 100 percent of those eligible to vote voted in 50 cities.
Obama to sign anti-smoking bill in Rose Garden – President Barack Obama is set to sign into law an anti-smoking bill that will give the Food and Drug Administration unprecedented authority to regulate tobacco.
Ensign Lover’s Hubby Wanted Money — But Through His Lawyer – Team Ensign is continuing to walk back its original claim that Doug Hampton, the husband of the senator’s girlfriend, tried to extort Ensign.
Schumer: Dems May Have To Go It Alone On Health Care – Without “dramatic” changes, Schumer said he would oppose the co-ops deal and urge other Democrats to do so as well.
Obama’s Stimulus Promise: More Than 600,000 Jobs – President Barack Obama promised Monday to deliver more than 600,000 jobs through his $787 billion stimulus plan this summer, with federal agencies pumping billions into public works projects, schools and summer youth programs.
North Korea sentences 2 U.S. reporters to prison – Laura Ling and Euna Lee, reporters for San Francisco-based Current TV, were sentenced by the top Central Court in Pyongyang in a two-day trial that started Friday as U.S. officials demanded the release of the two women.
U.S.-Backed Alliance Wins Election in Lebanon – An American-backed alliance has retained control of the Lebanese Parliament after a hotly contested election billed as a showdown between Tehran and Washington for influence in the Middle East.
If Hutchison leaves Senate, down-ballot frenzy could begin – The movement could provide an opening for Democrats finally to recapture a statewide seat and more local races, which could mean the difference in taking the state House.
Report: Before Congressional Run, Scarborough Represented Killer Of Abortion Doctor – Scarborough publicly addressed the story, for what appears to be the first time. But what he talked about was his own past ties to an anti-abortion killer. And his comments — which seemed designed largely to minimize those ties — appear to conflict with other reported facts about the incident.
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