Blue Mass Group

Reality-based commentary on politics.

Financial Impact of Health Care Reform in a Nutshell

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The NYT’s ever-excellent David Leonhardt spells it out:

A big chunk of the money to pay for the bill comes from lifting payroll taxes on households making more than $250,000. On average, the annual tax bill for households making more than $1 million a year will rise by $46,000 in 2013, according to the Tax Policy Center, a Washington research group. Another major piece of financing would cut Medicare subsidies for private insurers, ultimately affecting their executives and shareholders.

Now we know an important reason why the Republicans — party of the rich — hated this bill so much. As for the rest of us:

The benefits, meanwhile, flow mostly to households making less than four times the poverty level – $88,200 for a family of four people. Those without insurance in this group will become eligible to receive subsidies or to join Medicaid. (Many of the poor are already covered by Medicaid.) Insurance costs are also likely to drop for higher-income workers at small companies.

Finally, the bill will also reduce a different kind of inequality. In the broadest sense, insurance is meant to spread the costs of an individual’s misfortune – illness, death, fire, flood – across society. Since the late 1970s, though, the share of Americans with health insurance has shrunk. As a result, the gap between the economic well-being of the sick and the healthy has been growing, at virtually every level of the income distribution.

The health reform bill will reverse that trend. By 2019, 95 percent of people are projected to be covered, up from 85 percent today (and about 90 percent in the late 1970s). Even affluent families ineligible for subsidies will benefit if they lose their insurance, by being able to buy a plan that can no longer charge more for pre-existing conditions. In effect, healthy families will be picking up most of the bill – and their insurance will be somewhat more expensive than it otherwise would have been.

In short, a victory for the middle class. You know, the people Scott Brown, Tim Cahill, Charlie Baker, and Rep. Stephen Lynch, with their opposition to this law, are apparently against. By the way, the Draft Harmony Wu Facebook site, which is trying to encourage Ms. Wu to run in the primary against Lynch, is now up to 773 members.

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  1. http://cluborlov.blogspot.com/…

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    p>I was also pondering the concept of earth as another planet’s Hell.  I mean it just has to be so.  Why build up the United States to be the most free and prosperous nation and then deliberately tear it down.

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    p>Another member of my truth circle reminded me about Malthusian eugenics, note the dates on this obsolete piece of thought.

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    p>

    Where did this idea of “overpopulation” come from? It can all be traced back to the British Economist, Thomas Malthus, who speculated in 1789 that the planets rapid increase in population would soon outstrip the planets ability to produce food resulting in massive worldwide starvation. Why didn’t his prediction come true? It was because of the technological innovations of the industrial revolution which gave us the ability to produce food more efficiently. Now our government is paying farmers NOT to grow crops due to the abundance of food produced on considerably less farmland than a century ago. Charles Darwin put forth his theories which promote propagation of the “fit” and reduction of the “unfit”. This idea influenced the Elite to cause wars and famine in Africa to reduce it’s population as they were considered the “unfit” and were increasing in population at a greater rate than the rest of the world. The Elite found out that if a nation became more prosperous then it’s population increased. Because of this they are blocking development of third world countries.

    • It’s very hard for me to believe you’re real.

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      p>I can’t even understand you half the time, it’s like you’re speaking Greek. Or maybe Greek mixed in with Noldorin Elivish.

      <

      p>You’re pretty entertaining though, I suppose. I hope that’s your intention because that’s the result.

      • Here is some context that might help.  It appears that the code in which he’s speaking is actually translatable to an earthly language in the Old Norse/West Scandinavian tradition.  It appears that Lasthorsemen is writing a novel regarding his experiences.  There have been two installments so far.  Edgarthearmenian has been kind enough to provide fairly accurate English translations you will find via the links.  Here’s what Lasthorseman is really saying, though:  

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        p>

        Begynnelsen.   (6.00 / 3)
        Det startet da han var gutt. Lå i sengen om natten, kunne han høre dem snakke. Noen ganger de syntes å være under sengen. Andre ganger de syntes å ovenfor ham. Han så på skyggespill over taket kastet av naboene verandaen lys filtrert gjennom grener av dogwood utenfor vinduet hans og trodd på bevegelse av leppene. Selv på de varmeste august nettene, lukket han vinduet for å overdøve lyden av raslende løv. Han forbannet din sin egen pulserende hjerteslag. Han holdt pusten, lytter og nikker.

        Lukke øynene….   (0.00 / 0)
        Svetten begynte å perle på pannen. Dette skulle bli natten. Han var sikker på det. Men hvordan du kan kontakte dem? Hvor finner du dem? Han stod opp og gikk i veggen på motsatt side av vinduet. Konsentrere seg om grenene ‘bevegelse rett utenfor soverommet sitt veggen, begynte han å skimte et mønster. Han gikk tilbake til vinduet, trykke nesen mot glasset, tar i den glatte coolness. Lukke øynene, kunne han sans for perkusjon på enkelte trykke grenen. Han senket seg på kne, hvilte hans underarmene på karmen som klar for en alvorlig dialog, og presset kinnet og øret fast til ruten.

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        p>Don’t be discouraged.  All will be revealed in the end.  Quite the cliff hanger….

        • My geneology stopped at this big fire in Nova Scotia in the 1800s.  Going farther back though I know I have some Scottish highlander and the English side goes back to the Celts.  Cool, the stuff of Stonehedge and Braveheart.

          <

          p>Why am I here.  I test politically to the left of Ghandi but do have problems interpreting the questions.  Thinking they are loaded to begin with.  Are they asking me something or telling me how I should think.

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          p>I like the veils explanation.
          http://proliberty.com/observer…

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          p>Or you may say I have just spent way too much time on the net delving through wildly diverse topics from Nostradamus, Hopi Indian prophecies to secret government black ops projects and of course 911.

          <

          p>Many you live in “interesting” times.  Is that a blessing or a curse.

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          p>

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