Take health care. He has pushed a program that expands coverage, creates exchanges and moderately tinkers with the status quo — too moderately to restrain costs. To call this an orthodox liberal plan is an absurdity. It more closely resembles the center-left deals cut by Tom Daschle and Bob Dole, or Ted Kennedy and Mitt Romney. Obama has pushed this program with a tenacity unmatched in modern political history; with more tenacity than Bill Clinton pushed his health care plan or George W. Bush pushed Social Security reform.
Remember we were talking about choice and benefit tiers?? Here's what's in Obama's plan. The detractors would of course have you believe that the gvt will tell us what we can and cannot buy.
Al
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Benefit tiers:
Create four benefit categories of plans plus
a separate catastrophic plan to be offered
through the Exchange, and in the individual
and small group markets:
–
Bronze plan represents minimum creditable
coverage and provides the essential health
benefits, cover 60% of the benefit costs of the
plan, with an out-of-pocket limit equal to the
Health Savings Account (HSA) current law
limit ($5,950 for individuals and $11,900 for
families in 2010);
– Silver plan provides the essential health
benefits, covers 70% of the benefit costs of
the plan, with the HSA out-of-pocket limits;
– Gold plan provides the essential health
benefits, covers 80% of the benefit costs of
the plan, with the HSA out-of-pocket limits;
– Platinum plan provides the essential health
benefits, covers 90% of the benefit costs of
the plan, with the HSA out-of-pocket limits;
– Catastrophic plan available to those up to
age 30 or to those who are exempt from the
mandate to purchase coverage and provides
catastrophic coverage only with the coverage
level set at the HSA current law levels except
that prevention benefits and coverage for
three primary care visits would be exempt
from the deductible. This plan is only
available in the individual market.
• Reduce the out-of-pocket limits for those
with incomes up to 400% FPL to the following
levels:
– 100-200% FPL: one-third of the HSA limits
($1,983/individual and $3,967/family);
– 200-300% FPL: one-half of the HSA limits
($2,975/individual and $5,950/family);
– 300-400% FPL: two-thirds of the HSA limits
($3,987/individual and $7,973/family).
These out-of-pocket reductions are applied
within the actuarial limits of the plan and will
not increase the actuarial value of the plan. |
