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HELP Is on the Way
By PAUL KRUGMAN

The Congressional Budget Office has looked at the future of American health insurance, and it works.

A few weeks ago there was a furor when the budget office “scored” two incomplete Senate health reform proposals — that is, estimated their costs and likely impacts over the next 10 years. One proposal came in more expensive than expected; the other didn’t cover enough people. Health reform, it seemed, was in trouble.

But last week the budget office scored the full proposed legislation from the Senate committee on Health, Education, Labor and Pensions (HELP). And the news — which got far less play in the media than the downbeat earlier analysis — was very, very good. Yes, we can reform health care.

Let me start by pointing out something serious health economists have known all along: on general principles, universal health insurance should be eminently affordable.

After all, every other advanced country offers universal coverage, while spending much less on health care than we do. For example, the French health care system covers everyone, offers excellent care and costs barely more than half as much per person as our system.

And even if we didn’t have this international evidence to reassure us, a look at the U.S. numbers makes it clear that insuring the uninsured shouldn’t cost all that much, for two reasons.

First, the uninsured are disproportionately young adults, whose medical costs tend to be relatively low. The big spending is mainly on the elderly, who are already covered by Medicare.

Second, even now the uninsured receive a considerable (though inadequate) amount of “uncompensated” care, whose costs are passed on to the rest of the population. So the net cost of giving the uninsured explicit coverage is substantially less than it might seem.

Putting these observations together, what sounds at first like a daunting prospect — extending coverage to most or all of the 45 million people in America without health insurance — should, in the end, add only a few percent to our overall national health bill. And that’s exactly what the budget office found when scoring the HELP proposal.

Now, about those specifics: The HELP plan achieves near-universal coverage through a combination of regulation and subsidies. Insurance companies would be required to offer the same coverage to everyone, regardless of medical history; on the other side, everyone except the poor and near-poor would be obliged to buy insurance, with the aid of subsidies that would limit premiums as a share of income.

Employers would also have to chip in, with all firms employing more than 25 people required to offer their workers insurance or pay a penalty. By the way, the absence of such an “employer mandate” was the big problem with the earlier, incomplete version of the plan.

And those who prefer not to buy insurance from the private sector would be able to choose a public plan instead. This would, among other things, bring some real competition to the health insurance market, which is currently a collection of local monopolies and cartels.

The budget office says that all this would cost $597 billion over the next decade. But that doesn’t include the cost of insuring the poor and near-poor, whom HELP suggests covering via an expansion of Medicaid (which is outside the committee’s jurisdiction). Add in the cost of this expansion, and we’re probably looking at between $1 trillion and $1.3 trillion.

There are a number of ways to look at this number, but maybe the best is to point out that it’s less than 4 percent of the $33 trillion the U.S. government predicts we’ll spend on health care over the next decade. And that in turn means that much of the expense can be offset with straightforward cost-saving measures, like ending Medicare overpayments to private health insurers and reining in spending on medical procedures with no demonstrated health benefits.

So fundamental health reform — reform that would eliminate the insecurity about health coverage that looms so large for many Americans — is now within reach. The “centrist” senators, most of them Democrats, who have been holding up reform can no longer claim either that universal coverage is unaffordable or that it won’t work.

The only question now is whether a combination of persuasion from President Obama, pressure from health reform activists and, one hopes, senators’ own consciences will get the centrists on board — or at least get them to vote for cloture, so that diehard opponents of reform can’t block it with a filibuster.

This is a historic opportunity — arguably the best opportunity since 1947, when the A.M.A. killed Harry Truman’s health-care dreams. We’re right on the cusp. All it takes is a few more senators, and HELP will be on the way.

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Join the PACK!

Newspulper Headlines:

To Whom It May Concern: "Obama Tells the AP He Is Deeply Concerned About Rising Unemployment" --Associated Press

It Better Not Be a Free One: "Economists Out to Lunch" --The Washington Post

A Distinction Without a Difference: "Jackson Service Conflicts With Circus Visit" --The Washington Times

You Call This Fair and Balanced?: "Fox Snatches Lunch From Boy Before Attacking Woman, 76" --FoxNews.com

Even So, May We Borrow Your Gun?: "Expert Warns of Danger to Consumer Lending Arms" --Financial Times

Everything Seemingly Is Spinning Out of Control: "Biden to Take New Role Overseeing Iraq Policy" --Agence France-Presse

News You Can Use: "Beware the Obama 'Evil Eye'" --Drudge Report

Bottom Stories of the Day: "D.C.'s Marion Barry Arrested Again" --CNN.com

(Thanks to The Wall Street Journal's James Taranto)

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me@rescam.org

Newspulper Headlines:

What Exactly Was Intended?: "Obama: Stimulus 'Worked as Intended'" --Politico ++ "Worst Yet to Come: White House Economic Adviser" --Agence France-Presse

En Garde!: "Senate Calls for Real Fencing, Not 'Virtual'" --El Paso Times

If He Does Say So Himself: "UN Chief Says He's a Man of Results Not Rhetoric" --Associated Press

The Good News Is, They Finally Have Indoor Plumbing: "National Geographic to Film Rednecks in Bath" --Peoria (IL) Journal Star

Everything Seemingly Is Spinning Out of Control: "Gore: U.S. Climate Bill Will Help Bring About 'Global Governance'" --ClimateDepot.com

Bottom Stories of the Day: "Incoming Alaska Governor to Tweet Less Than Palin" --Associated Press

(Thanks to The Wall Street Journal's James Taranto)

"'To those who say that our economic decisions 'have not produced jobs, have not produced prosperity, and simply have not worked' I say, take a look around. I say, 'Don't let your opposition to the Recovery Act blind you to its results.' Come see what I see everywhere I go: workers rehired, factories reopened, cops on the street, teachers in the classroom, progress toward getting our economy back on the move.'" --Vice President Joe Biden

IMHO Mr. Biden appears to be suffering from selective vision or else his guiding PAC has an excellent propagannda program. My job is still on the line for elimination and I've not had my hours restored. My interest on my savings is 6 cents a month while the interest rate on my credit card has gone up AGAIN!
Friends who were laid off are STILL laid off and no one is hiring. Those that do hire preferr illegals since there are so many of them. Does he see the gang in Springfield Illinois voting themselves a pay raise and then saying the state is going broke so we must raise the sales tax? Does he see my property tax bill going Up along with my appraised value going up while the market value of my home drops below my mortgage balance? Can he see the lines at food pantries getting longer and the food donations getting smaller? Can he see auto insurance premiums go higher, home insurance go higher, licence plates go higher, doctor's office visit fees go higher, pescription costs go higher, medical insrance deductables go from 20 to 30 percent?
IMHO
Mr Biden - take off those rose colored sunshades! We're working a shipyard here and you need welding goggles to look at reality!

Newspulper Headlines:

Pyramid Scheme Collapses: "IRS Fails to Collect $1.2 Billion From Those Owing $1 Million" --Bloomberg

First Same-Sex Marriage, Now This: "Kelly Hildebrandt to Marry Kelly Hildebrandt" --Houston Chronicle

How Many Arms Does He Have?: "Man's Arm Severed, 3 Others Critically Injured in Crash Near Midway" --Chicago Sun-Times

News of the Tautological: "Costly Gas Pushes Up Consumer Prices" --The New York Times

Everything Seemingly Is Spinning Out of Control: "Big Blobs of Mystery Goo Floating Off Alaska Coast" --McClatchy Newspapers

News You Can Use: "Durham Mayor Proclaims Friday a Day of Happiness" --News & Observer (Raleigh, NC)

Bottom Stories of the Day: "Sotomayor, Franken Both 'Perry Mason' Fans" --Associated Press

(Thanks to The Wall Street Journal's James Taranto)

"Today, we're spending like we're Paris Hilton, regulating like we're Ralph Nader, nationalizing like we're Hugo Chavez, printing money like we're the Weimar Republic and taxing like we're, well, the Democratic Congress." --former Georgia Democrat Sen. Zell Miller

"'To those who say that our economic decisions 'have not produced jobs, have not produced prosperity, and simply have not worked' I say, take a look around. I say, 'Don't let your opposition to the Recovery Act blind you to its results.' Come see what I see everywhere I go: workers rehired, factories reopened, cops on the street, teachers in the classroom, progress toward getting our economy back on the move.'" --Vice President Joe Biden

Perhaps, as Hal says in the post subsequent to the one I am quoting, Mr. Biden does have rose-colored glasses - at least at times. But I must also say that my son, after testing and with his four years of previous experience in another city, is at the top of the hire list for the local police department. Our department is able to hire needed police officers because of the stimulus money they have received. One could ask how they will continue to pay for them when the money runs out but the answer to that one is the continually - locally - increasing tax money from an expanding population which is why we need more officers in the first place. But of course the increase in money lags behind the expansion of population. The stimulus money is enabling us to hire and train - an expensive process - the officers we need now.

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To the victor goes not only the spoils of war but, more importantly, the bias of history.

Regarding Obama and the Cambridge Police Department, you may recall that between 1989-1991, while a student at Harvard, Obama received 17 citations for offenses like parking in a bus-loading zone (how insensitive to those who must rely on public transportation). According to the Associated Press, Obama's citations and late fees were paid by somebody "two weeks before he officially launched his presidential campaign." I suppose he thought those citations were the result of racial profiling and thus, did not need paying.

Newspulper Headlines:

No One Said Getting Old Was Easy: "House Dems Clear One Health Obstacle, Others Loom" --Associated Press

Help Wanted: "Democrats Search for Villains on Health Care" --Politico

Breaking News From 1973, 1978, 1988, 1993, 1994, 1998, 2000, 2003, 2007...: "US in Diplomatic Push for Mideast Peace" --Agence France-Presse

Breaking News From 2007: "Clinton Hopes for Female President in Her Lifetime" --Reuters

We Blame Global Warming: "School Officials: Climate Not Right for School Construction Referenda" --Times (Munster, IN)

How Many More Does He Want?: "Newark Mayor Says 10 Shootings Unacceptable" --Associated Press

Everything Seemingly Is Spinning Out of Control: "'Imbeciles': Hundreds Evacuated From Their Homes as Brushfire Caused by French Military Threatens Marseille" --Daily Mail (London)

Bottom Stories of the Day: "Obama Blames GOP for Stalled Health Bills" --The Hill

(Thanks to The Wall Street Journal's James Taranto)

How to ruin the taste of a good beer

By Ruben Navarrette
San Diego Union Tribune

July 29, 2009

It has been two weeks since his arrest by Cambridge Police Sgt. James Crowley, and Harvard professor Henry Louis Gates Jr. still needs an attitude adjustment.

That’s what my father’s generation of old-school law enforcement officers was known to provide now and then when someone mouthed off, or lobbed insults or challenged their authority. Today, folks on the job refer to this sort of thing as “contempt of cop.” It’s not illegal, but it’s also not a smart thing to do if you have an aversion to handcuffs and steel bars, since there are plenty of other things for which you can be arrested.

Just ask Gates, who was written up for “loud and tumultuous behavior” at his house.

What needs adjusting isn’t Gates’ attitude toward law enforcement; that’s between him and the police. The real problem is his presumptuous attitude toward the rest of us. The professor needs to stop calling what happened to him a “teaching moment.” We’re not his students. More importantly, we’re not the ones who let our ego get the best of us and went ballistic over a simple and harmless request to provide identification.

And how unreasonable was that request given that Gates’ house had been broken into on a previous occasion? I bet Gates wonders: “Where were the police then?” The experience of becoming a crime victim has a way of turning a liberal into a conservative. And what about the passerby who called police to tell them that two men were trying to break into the house? Gates probably wishes someone had called the police during that earlier incident. Neighborhood Watch indeed.

The only person who needs to learn a lesson from all this is Gates, and the syllabus for that course should include a few lines about the proper way to interact with police officers. I’m surprised that, with all the knowledge that Gates has acquired on the way to becoming one of the nation’s most renowned public intellectuals, he never learned how to talk to a police officer — and, more importantly, how not to talk to one.

The answer is politely and with deference, with the goal of diffusing tension rather than exacerbating it. And this is universally true, whatever your color or the color of the officer.

Gates also sounded a tad naive when he said that the incident “made me realize . . . how vulnerable all black men are, how vulnerable all people of color are and all poor people to capricious forces.” He has spent his career chronicling the African-American experience, and he just realized this now? That speaks to how detached the Harvard professor is from his own subject matter.

Besides, this incident wasn’t about racial profiling — a concept that Crowley is well acquainted with since, for five years, he has taught police academy recruits how to avoid it. What this incident was really about was Crowley trying to control a situation that was quickly getting out of control.

That point seems lost on President Barack Obama, who said that the Cambridge police had “acted stupidly” only to walk back on that statement a couple of days later. At moments like this, Obama seems to be struggling with an inner tension between the responsibility he feels to offer the country some special insight into such matters as the first black president and the desire to be post-racial. It’s a difficult tightrope to walk, and the Gates arrest made the president lose his footing.

Obama tried to make peace with Crowley by inviting him — and Gates — to the White House for a beer. It’s a nice gesture. It’s not every day that a cop on the beat gets an offer like that. But what concerns me is that Obama also said that he sees this incident as a “teachable moment.”

Oh dear. Just what does the president think is the lesson from all this, and who does he think needs to learn it?

As Crowley enters the premises of 1600 Pennsylvania Ave., he should be careful. I hope he doesn’t find himself cast as racially insensitive or on the wrong end of a lecture about how to do police work by those who have never had to do it.

After all, nothing ruins a good beer like the taste of condescension.

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me@rescam.org

Man convicted of making internet death threats faces up to 10 years in prison. His "I was drunk" defense didn't work.

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me@rescam.org

Newspulper Headlines:

'An Irish Cop, Two Black Guys and Joe Biden Walk Into a Bar....': "Black Scholar Says He's Able to Joke About Arrest" --Associated Press

We Blame Global Warming: "Ski Resorts in Summer Are Fun but Not for Skiing" --Associated Press

Who Would Want More Than 2?: "House OKs More Arms Than Obama Wants" --Arizona Daily Star (Tucson)

They're Always in the Last Place You Look: "51 Headless Vikings Found in English Execution Pit" --National Geographic News

Everything Seemingly Is Spinning Out of Control: "Foreign Workers Market Spinning Out of Control" --Jerusalem Post

News of the Tautological: "Sheriff's Office Looking for Missing Man" --Advocate (Baton Rouge, LA)

Bottom Stories of the Day: "Obama Lectures the Country on Race, Economy" --U.S. News & World Report Web site

(Thanks to The Wall Street Journal's James Taranto)


"When they call the roll in the Senate, the Senators do not know whether to answer 'present' or 'not guilty.'" --President Theodore Roosevelt (1858-1919)

How to ruin the taste of a good beer

By Ruben Navarrette
San Diego Union Tribune

July 29, 2009

It has been two weeks since his arrest by Cambridge Police Sgt. James Crowley, and Harvard professor Henry Louis Gates Jr. still needs an attitude adjustment.

That’s what my father’s generation of old-school law enforcement officers was known to provide now and then when someone mouthed off, or lobbed insults or challenged their authority. Today, folks on the job refer to this sort of thing as “contempt of cop.” It’s not illegal, but it’s also not a smart thing to do if you have an aversion to handcuffs and steel bars, since there are plenty of other things for which you can be arrested.

Just ask Gates, who was written up for “loud and tumultuous behavior” at his house.

What needs adjusting isn’t Gates’ attitude toward law enforcement; that’s between him and the police. The real problem is his presumptuous attitude toward the rest of us. The professor needs to stop calling what happened to him a “teaching moment.” We’re not his students. More importantly, we’re not the ones who let our ego get the best of us and went ballistic over a simple and harmless request to provide identification.

And how unreasonable was that request given that Gates’ house had been broken into on a previous occasion? I bet Gates wonders: “Where were the police then?” The experience of becoming a crime victim has a way of turning a liberal into a conservative. And what about the passerby who called police to tell them that two men were trying to break into the house? Gates probably wishes someone had called the police during that earlier incident. Neighborhood Watch indeed.

The only person who needs to learn a lesson from all this is Gates, and the syllabus for that course should include a few lines about the proper way to interact with police officers. I’m surprised that, with all the knowledge that Gates has acquired on the way to becoming one of the nation’s most renowned public intellectuals, he never learned how to talk to a police officer — and, more importantly, how not to talk to one.

The answer is politely and with deference, with the goal of diffusing tension rather than exacerbating it. And this is universally true, whatever your color or the color of the officer.

Gates also sounded a tad naive when he said that the incident “made me realize . . . how vulnerable all black men are, how vulnerable all people of color are and all poor people to capricious forces.” He has spent his career chronicling the African-American experience, and he just realized this now? That speaks to how detached the Harvard professor is from his own subject matter.

Besides, this incident wasn’t about racial profiling — a concept that Crowley is well acquainted with since, for five years, he has taught police academy recruits how to avoid it. What this incident was really about was Crowley trying to control a situation that was quickly getting out of control.

That point seems lost on President Barack Obama, who said that the Cambridge police had “acted stupidly” only to walk back on that statement a couple of days later. At moments like this, Obama seems to be struggling with an inner tension between the responsibility he feels to offer the country some special insight into such matters as the first black president and the desire to be post-racial. It’s a difficult tightrope to walk, and the Gates arrest made the president lose his footing.

Obama tried to make peace with Crowley by inviting him — and Gates — to the White House for a beer. It’s a nice gesture. It’s not every day that a cop on the beat gets an offer like that. But what concerns me is that Obama also said that he sees this incident as a “teachable moment.”

Oh dear. Just what does the president think is the lesson from all this, and who does he think needs to learn it?

As Crowley enters the premises of 1600 Pennsylvania Ave., he should be careful. I hope he doesn’t find himself cast as racially insensitive or on the wrong end of a lecture about how to do police work by those who have never had to do it.

After all, nothing ruins a good beer like the taste of condescension.

Before I begin I must say that had I been invited to the party my selection would have been Diamond Bear - not because it is the best beer on the planet but because it is a quite decent beer and more importantly it is locally brewed. When it is not an issue of right and wrong I definitely believe in supporting my neighbor.

As soon as I heard about this incident and learned who the principles were my first thoughts were "I bet you anything this is not about race. I will bet anyone a hundred dollar bill an academic got pissy with a police officer because he was required to show documentation of some kind".

Why did I think this? First, because I went to a prestigious college and witnessed first hand the attitude toward law enforcement officers - one I could not share because I believe in evaluating every incident and person on the particular merits of the situation. I have no taste for bullies in blue suits - and they most certainly exist. I also have no taste for bullies in academic robes - I have met them, too. And secondly, because my son, who chose to go into law enforcement, found the academics in the community where he served to be the rudest and most arrogant people with whom he had to deal.

For Professor Gates to claim racism in this particular incident when he conducted himself so abysmally - regardless of his excuses - is a disservice to every person of color who truly experiences racial injustice. Too many people know enough to know that his claims are suspect and valid claims of racism will now be more discounted as a result.

The most "teachable moment" here, as far as I am concerned, should be a wider public awareness of academic hostility toward law enforcement - a class issue (yes, our classless society is VERY class conscious), not a racial issue. How sad, when there are more important issues to consider - like continuing racism in our society.

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To the victor goes not only the spoils of war but, more importantly, the bias of history.

I concur with Nin Ki on almost every point except I MUST point out that getting pissy about supposed personal affronts stems largely from media portrayal of law enforcemnt officers.
The newsrags and posts are chock full of police faux pas but darn few mentions of the crimes thwarted or efforts made on behalf of victims by enforcement departments.
We are too ready to yell POLICE BRUTALITY when in actuality these are people who are likely to meet the worst side of our society more than the better side and are mentally prepared to encounter it without prior notice.
I have to admit even my local cops come on strong - I am often used by the Elgin police as a training exercise for police cadets since I drive a rather garish 1978 Trick Van
I guess it's like the old saw says - If it looks like a duck, walks like a duck, and acts like a duck - It just MIGHT be a Duck!

I concur with Nin Ki on almost every point except I MUST point out that getting pissy about supposed personal affronts stems largely from media portrayal of law enforcemnt officers.
The newsrags and posts are chock full of police faux pas but darn few mentions of the crimes thwarted or efforts made on behalf of victims by enforcement departments.
We are too ready to yell POLICE BRUTALITY when in actuality these are people who are likely to meet the worst side of our society more than the better side and are mentally prepared to encounter it without prior notice.
I have to admit even my local cops come on strong - I am often used by the Elgin police as a training exercise for police cadets since I drive a rather garish 1978 Trick Van
I guess it's like the old saw says - If it looks like a duck, walks like a duck, and acts like a duck - It just MIGHT be a Duck!

Hal,
I am not sure I understand your point but then it has been a long day. If I did not make myself clear, I meant to say that I suspected Professor Gates got "pissy" with the police officer - not that the police officer got pissy with him. Of course, I was not there and have no way of knowing the facts of the specific incident. That was just my suspicion based on personal experience and published and broadcast media reports.

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To the victor goes not only the spoils of war but, more importantly, the bias of history.