DATE: 17 Dec. 2009
TO: My Political E-Mail List
SUBJECT: Podesta’s Top Ten Reasons for Progressives to Support the Health Reform Bill
Although I would have preferred Medicare for All, or a robust Public Option, or even a Medicare Buy-In, there is evidently no way to get any of those solidly progressive health care reforms passed in the Senate — given the reality that at least a handful of conservative Senate Democrats, let alone all the Senate Republicans, are against each of those measures, and given the decision by the Senate Majority Leader not to try passing this legislation by budget reconciliation (Although I have trouble with that decision, Sen. Reid’s reasoning is not unreasonable, given that this bill would have to be split up into (arguably) budgetary and non-budgetary parts, extensively re-written for budgetary and administrative purposes, and put through a very lengthy and unpredictable process, pushing aside much other Senate business — including jobs bills vital to the nation’s economic recovery and the Democrats’ political power — during an election year, when politicians’ time and energy are of course directed elsewhere: a major reason Republicans have tried so hard to delay this process).
But to those who say this stripped down bill is worse than nothing — true progressives like Howard Dean, whom I sincerely respect and whose reasoning is also not unreasonable — Center for American Progress president John Podesta replies with his top ten reasons progressives — like Sens. Sherrod Brown, Tom Harkin, and Jay Rockefeller — can support this health reform legislation (as we currently know it):
1. Largest Expansion Of Coverage Since Medicare’s Creation: Thirty-one million previously uninsured Americans will have insurance.
2. Low/Middle Income Americans Will Not Go Without Coverage: For low-income Americans struggling near the poverty line, the bill represents the largest single expansion of Medicaid since its inception. Combined with subsidies for middle income families, the bill’s provisions will ensure that working class Americans will no longer go without basic health care coverage.
3. Insurance Companies Will Never Be Able to Drop or Deny You Coverage Because You Are Sick: Insurers can no longer deny coverage because of a pre-existing condition. They can’t rescind coverage or impose lifetime or annual limits on care. Significantly, the bill also ends insurer discrimination against women — who currently pay as much as 48% more for coverage than men — and gives them access preventive services with no cost sharing.
4. Lowers Premiums For Families: The Senate bill could lower premiums for the overall population by 8.4%. For the subsidized population, premiums would decrease even more dramatically. According to the CBO, “the amount that subsidized enrollees would pay for non-group coverage would be roughly 56 percent to 59 percent lower, on average than the nongroup premiums charged under current law.”
5. Invests in Keeping People Healthy: The bill creates a Prevention and Public Health Fund to expand and sustain funding for public prevention programs that prevent disease and promote wellness.
6. Insurers Can’t Offer Subprime Health Care: Insurers operating in the individual and small group markets will no longer sell subprime policies that deny coverage when illness strikes and you need it most. Everyone will be offered an essential benefits package of comprehensive benefits.
7. Helps Businesses Afford Coverage: Small employers can take advantage of large risk pools by purchasing coverage through the bill’s state-based exchanges. Employers with no more than 25 employees would receive a tax credit to help them provide coverage to their employees. The bill also establishes a temporary reinsurance program for employers providing coverage to retirees over the age of 55 who are not eligible for Medicare.
8. Improves Medicare: The bill eliminates the waste and fraud in the Medicare system, gets rid of the special subsidy to private insurers participating in Medicare Advantage and extends the life of the Medicare trust fund by 9 years. It also closes the doughnut hole that affected 3.4 seniors enrolled in Medicare Part D in 2008.
9. Reduces The Deficit: Not only would the bill expand coverage to 30 million Americans without adding to the nation debt, it would also reduce the deficit by up to $409 billion over 10 years.
10. Reduces National Health Spending: A CAP-Commonwealth Fund analysis concludes the bill could reduce overall spending by close to $683 billion over 10 years — with the potential to save families $2,500. Even the most conservative government estimates conclude that the bill would reduce national health care expenditures by at least 0.3% by 2019.
As for me, I will heed the late Sen. Kennedy’s advice that sometimes “half a loaf” is better than none, and look to the experience of his own state, where similar reforms increased coverage, saving lives, but lacked sufficient cost controls: The people of Massachusetts do not want to go back to where they were before, but want to move on, building upon the reforms they now value — as much as the national population values Medicare. Even civil rights were not won in a day: It took several pieces of legislation — for voting rights, fair housing, and so on — over several years to enact the changes required. Let’s get this done. Get jobs bills done. And earn the respect of the American people. I thank Pres. Obama for his leadership; remember that he has taken us farther than any other president ever has. I wish there were more that we could’ve done now. But given the way things are — especially in the Senate (The filibuster rule needs to be seriously reconsidered!) — this is the best that we can do. Let’s do it!
Doug
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