Capitol Hill Blue Forums Political Issues Politics In General GOP at war with itself on health care

Greger:: yeah I meant raising direct taxes i.e. x% increase in tax bracket 3. While even moderately intelligent folks will realize an increase is an increase no matter where it comes from, a well disguised tax is optically more palatable.

The concept of pools is interesting as it appears to me what conservatives wanted to do was segregate groups to disguise an idiots legerdemain. With healthy groups premiums would be lower, so it appears the rates have gone down, while in the other hand the high risk pool is paying astronomical rates but they are a minority so all is well. They also argued the actual rates would be lower for the high risk pool because .... well because ... and thus the cost outlay would be smaller. I don;t think that would be the case because .... basic arithmetic. If premium costs are X because HC costs are Y, it does not matter how X is subdivided, the cost will remain the same and in fact may even be higher i.e. the cost of high end care may outstrip the low end premium cost reductions of the low risk pool.

Bottom line, I think the single pool is a better spread.

NWP:: I just listened to Rep Yoho and I have to snicker. This guy has never said anything I thought remotely resembled something intelligent and today is no different but he was far more dense.

He said the HFC could work with Democrats and get stuff done. Now, he looked sober, but that sounded as if he was smoking the wacky weed and had a kumbaya epiphany. It is as you and many others have said, there is a fundamental philosophical difference between the extreme conservatives and everyone else and never the twain shall meet.

But this points out a more revealing reality. No Republican can work with Democrats because of basic conservative theology (get government out). Notice I didn't say it the other way, as I believe Democrats could work with a solution which achieved the desired goal even if a free market solution. The underlying problem is someone has to tell the free market which direction to go.

At some point in time I think a simplification should be introduced to remove employer paid insurance.