Health care costs are still rising. Essentially nothing has been done to address that. All we hear about is expanding this or that program, enhancing Social Security and Medicare, forgiving loans, etc., mostly without a plan for ongoing funding.
There is virtual silence on actually fixing problems, and adequately funding existing programs. Forget telling Americans the truth about paying for what they want, only “millionaires and billionaires” need foot the bill – or is it the “wealthy?”
One area where we can have some control over inflation is with our insurance premiums,” Rep. Ruben Gallego (D-Ariz.) said Monday on a panel hosted by the Arizona chapter of the Democrat-aligned advocacy group Protect Our Care. “There is a direct chance we can stop an increase if Republicans will act with us to continue subsidies we created.”
Gallego was referring to expanded subsidies for health insurance purchased through Obamacare’s exchanges that were enacted last year as part of the American Rescue Plan Act, a $1.9 trillion COVID-19 relief package.
The subsidies, which are set to expire at the end of this year, removed the cap on income eligibility so people above 400% of the federal poverty level could receive them and pay less for Obamacare. The American Rescue Plan also provided more generous Obamacare subsidies for those already eligible, especially lower-income Americans, so many could get plans without spending money out of pocket.
Stopping premium increases is not stopping increasing costs and sooner or later the bill must be paid.
QUINNSCOMMENTARY 
I don’t know if anyone is working on ideas to cut overall costs of healthcare in the US. Washington seems to key on insurance and premiums. Their old idea of pushing HMOs turned out to be a dud and I suppose Medicare advantage is another scheme. The whole idea of docs providing one test or treatment after another doesn’t seem to register in the political mind. My question is how do other countries run cheaper on healthcare while maintaining a life expectancy as great or greater than us.
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Other countries don’t have the most obese population in the world for one thing and they use various limitations and forms of rationing that Americans would find unacceptable plus physicians, etc earn quite a bit less.
Dick
Richard D Quinn Blogging at Quinnscommentary.net and HumbleDollar.com @quinnscomments
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Rep. Gallego’s plan is cost shifting. It does nothing to stop the rise in healthcare costs nor healthcare insurance premiums. If anything it is giving insurance companies a blank check from the federal government. Every program the government throws money, costs raise faster than inflation. Look at student loans. Tuition has been raising faster than inflation for decades. Same with healthcare since Medicare guarantees payment. Housing bubbles due to government backed loans for people who can’t afford mortgages.
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