Congressional Budget Office gives tumbs up to universal health insurance
02 05 08 - 13:13
By Matt Canham
The Salt Lake Tribune
WASHINGTON - A universal health care system overseen by the government but delivered by private companies seems to make financial sense, according to a preliminary analysis released Thursday by the nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office.
The report boosts the confidence of Utah GOP Sen. Bob Bennett and Democratic Sen. Ron Wyden of Oregon, who have meshed Republican and Democratic ideas into one proposal they hope the next president will adopt.
Bennett and Wyden "have served up health care on a silver platter for the next president," said Sen. Bob Corker, R-Tenn., one of 14 supporters of what is called the Healthy Americans Act.
But the seven Democrats and seven Republicans may have an easier time convincing a President Hillary Clinton rather than a President Barack Obama or John McCain.
That's because the ambitious bill would requires every person to buy health insurance, known as an individual mandate. Obama has endorsed a mandate for children, but has criticized such a requirement for adults. McCain has rejected mandates altogether, most recently in a series of speeches calling for deregulation.
Clinton is the only candidate who has backed a universal mandate, which some experts believe will help reduce costs by spreading the risk among all people.
Bennett said he believes the other aspects of the "big and bold" proposal - breaking the link between employers and health insurance, new competition in the individual market and a boosted individual tax credit - may be enough to persuade McCain to compromise on a mandate if it meant he could claim some credit for the biggest health care bill in decades.
"I would suspect that a President McCain wanting to get this notch on his belt would say 'OK, if that is what it takes to get it passed,' " said Bennett, a McCain supporter who noted he has not discussed the bill with the McCain campaign.
The Healthy Americans Act would require states to create "connectors" under which private insurers could compete for customers. The poor would be covered by a government funded plan. Those who can pay but refuse to participate would be forced to pay a penalty.
Bennett and Wyden expect increased competition to reduce premiums and if everyone is covered they believe costly emergency room costs will go down as well.
The Budget Office report, drafted with the help of the Joint Committee on Taxation, said if the bill was passed this year, the insurance system could be set up by 2012 and fully running by 2014. And while it would cost an unspecified amount in those two transition years, it would be "roughly budget neutral" by 2014. After that, it would actually raise a little money for the government, according to the analysis, which the senators will undoubtedly use in their sales pitches to the next president and their fellow senators.
The nonpartisan analysts have thrown "decades of conventional wisdom in the trash can," Wyden said. "They've proven we can get everyone in America health care coverage without breaking the bank."
mcanham@sltrib.com