Marcie Wheeler breaks it down exactly what a health care bill without a public
option will cost you. Pile this bill on people losing their jobs, employers
dropping health insurance, exorbitant co-pays and refusal to pay claims and
we're in real trouble. This bill will make the Democrats look like such idiots
they might as well pack their bags leave Congress now. Only the Blue Dogs, the
Democrats sucking on the insurance industry's tit will survive. Many Americans
could end up in the poor house farming potatoes for survival. I saw this coming:
"Bad Max Baucus' health care plan is, best as I can tell, an attempt to turn
the middle class into serfs to the health care industry.
Consider the "limits" he places on health care costs for those who make between
300% and 400% of the poverty limit (between $66,150 and $88,200 for a family of
four):
Another section of Mr. Baucus's proposal would help pay insurance premiums,
co-payments and deductibles for people with incomes less than 300 percent of
the poverty level ($66,150 for a family of four). It would also provide some
protection for people with incomes from 300 percent to 400 percent of the
poverty level (up to $88,200 for a family of four), so they would generally not
have to pay more than 13 percent of their income in premiums.
So Bad Max says that he will prevent these people from having to pay more than
13% of their income in health care premiums. For the family of four making
$67,000, that's $8,710. For the family of four making $88,200, that's $11,466.
For the family of four making $90,000, apparently, there are no such limits, so
they may be paying much more. For what may well be utter and total junk.
Now, frankly, there are a lot of middle class families already paying more than
that. Heck, mr. ew and I are paying more than $8,700, and that's just for two
of us, and that's before Blue Cross starts whacking us for my pre-existing
condition next year.
But that's just the premiums.
Then, Bad Max has a limit for total out-of-pocket expenses (and this appears to
include everything). For that family of four--regardless of whether they make
$67,000 or $88,200, that limit would be $11,900.
Mr. Baucus would impose limits on out-of-pocket medical costs the
co-payments, deductibles and similar charges for covered items and services.
The limits would be $11,900 a year for a family and $5,950 for an individual.
The comparable numbers in the House bill are $10,000 and $5,000.
Now, of course families would only have to pay that limit if they used enough
services to reach that limit--though in Bad Max's plan, health insurance
companies are asked to cover far less of actual expenses, so in Bad Max's plan,
families are going to reach that limit relatively quickly. If Bad Max asks
families to pay 35% of their costs, then that represents just $34,000 in costs,
or less.
And the only way to keep those costs down under Bad Max's bill is the co-op. So
what's to stop the hospitals for charging $10,000 for you to walk through the
door? Or for Pfizer to charge you $5,000 a year for your required medicine?
What's to stop the insurance companies from charging everyone that 13% rate on
premiums, as a matter of course? Under Bad Max's plan, because it requires
everyone to have insurance, corporations actually have more of a guarantee (and
therefore an incentive) to charge such exorbitant fees."
More:
Marcie Wheeler at emptywheel Tuesday September 8, 2009 6:02 am
http://snipurl.com/ro4so
