Not sure what the Kucinich amendment means. Could a state government outlaw private health insurance? Could it prohibit the private purschase of medical care? Scary.
Obama lite still seems quite radical to me. The particular tax credits mentioned require the health exchange scheme, and most likely a mandate for some form of community rating and guaranteed issue to be feasible. Which in turn implies an individual mandate and penalties for noncompliance, etc.
A less extreme proposal would be for a modest tax credit applicable toward premiums for coverage that meets minimal standards for rate adjustment and issue, roughly comparable to the requirements for employer plans. Then the tax credit takes the place of a mandate, loss of the credit is the only penalty for individual, and consumers are still free to forgo the credit and shop for cheaper underwritten coverage if they desire.
Obama lite refers to the compromise proposal suggested in the WSJ piece– an exchange, a tax credit paid for by a cap on tax-free benefits, and various benign cost-saving proposals.
The tax credits being bandied about will never become law without some sort of mandate for community rating and guaranteed issue, along with everything else those imply. My suggestion was that rather than an unconditional tax credit plus a mandate, a more cautious approach would be for a conditional tax credit and no mandate.
I went through siamlir situations (goatherd mentioned) with my Mom and brother.It was very unpleasant.Kinda along this line, Florida has a new law requiring those applying for welfare to take a drug test. The applicant is required to pay for the test, and will be reimbursed if he / she passes.My unofficial poll shows this idea is VERY popular with those I know.I, of course, think the idea is beyond lame and cruel.When I was a kid, my Mom made the bad choice of divorcing my Dad (on the advice of her mother and crazy sister). This put my Mom in the position of a single mother with no skills beyond being a nurses aid ( Central Florida, 1960 s) with 3 kids. Then she had a series of health issues that forced our family into poverty and on the welfare train. I remember the humiliation of going to the county facility to pick up powered milk, rolled oats, and blocks of cheese.I don’t understand the logic of this new law. Almost everyone I know thinks decriminalizing marajuana is a good idea.Surveys show that over 40 % of Americans use recreational drugs; if Alchohol, tobacco, and caffein are counted, that number jumps considerably.I suppose the image conjured by the law is a bunch of lazy non-whites sitting around popping pills or toking the day away; which suggests there is a them vs. us mentality.Once again, this law has not been fully thought through. Those who cannot access the basic necessities of life will be forced to desperate Measures.At that point, simple help will morph into law enforcement and incarceration.With a still struggling economy, many families are having a hard time, especially with the high cost of fuel and basic needs.The class who wishes to do this is always screaming that we are a Christian nation. I don’t recall Christ requiring drug tests for the people he fed when he multiplied the loaves and fishes. Rumor has it he will return sometime in October, perhaps we can ask him then.Chief, you hit the nail on the head.Great comments all around.
Not sure what the Kucinich amendment means. Could a state government outlaw private health insurance? Could it prohibit the private purschase of medical care? Scary.
I don’t think the general public realizes how devastating the CBO report was.
Obama lite still seems quite radical to me. The particular tax credits mentioned require the health exchange scheme, and most likely a mandate for some form of community rating and guaranteed issue to be feasible. Which in turn implies an individual mandate and penalties for noncompliance, etc.
A less extreme proposal would be for a modest tax credit applicable toward premiums for coverage that meets minimal standards for rate adjustment and issue, roughly comparable to the requirements for employer plans. Then the tax credit takes the place of a mandate, loss of the credit is the only penalty for individual, and consumers are still free to forgo the credit and shop for cheaper underwritten coverage if they desire.
Obama lite means an insurance exchange — an artificail market where everyone faces perverse incentives because there is no such thing as a real price.
Obama lite refers to the compromise proposal suggested in the WSJ piece– an exchange, a tax credit paid for by a cap on tax-free benefits, and various benign cost-saving proposals.
The tax credits being bandied about will never become law without some sort of mandate for community rating and guaranteed issue, along with everything else those imply. My suggestion was that rather than an unconditional tax credit plus a mandate, a more cautious approach would be for a conditional tax credit and no mandate.
I went through siamlir situations (goatherd mentioned) with my Mom and brother.It was very unpleasant.Kinda along this line, Florida has a new law requiring those applying for welfare to take a drug test. The applicant is required to pay for the test, and will be reimbursed if he / she passes.My unofficial poll shows this idea is VERY popular with those I know.I, of course, think the idea is beyond lame and cruel.When I was a kid, my Mom made the bad choice of divorcing my Dad (on the advice of her mother and crazy sister). This put my Mom in the position of a single mother with no skills beyond being a nurses aid ( Central Florida, 1960 s) with 3 kids. Then she had a series of health issues that forced our family into poverty and on the welfare train. I remember the humiliation of going to the county facility to pick up powered milk, rolled oats, and blocks of cheese.I don’t understand the logic of this new law. Almost everyone I know thinks decriminalizing marajuana is a good idea.Surveys show that over 40 % of Americans use recreational drugs; if Alchohol, tobacco, and caffein are counted, that number jumps considerably.I suppose the image conjured by the law is a bunch of lazy non-whites sitting around popping pills or toking the day away; which suggests there is a them vs. us mentality.Once again, this law has not been fully thought through. Those who cannot access the basic necessities of life will be forced to desperate Measures.At that point, simple help will morph into law enforcement and incarceration.With a still struggling economy, many families are having a hard time, especially with the high cost of fuel and basic needs.The class who wishes to do this is always screaming that we are a Christian nation. I don’t recall Christ requiring drug tests for the people he fed when he multiplied the loaves and fishes. Rumor has it he will return sometime in October, perhaps we can ask him then.Chief, you hit the nail on the head.Great comments all around.