Howard Dean and Keith Olbermann discuss public option and Medicare opt in.

[madfloridian]

Run time: 09:14 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gttIbbvlqIc   Posted on YouTube: December 09, 2009 By YouTube Member: Views on YouTube: 0   Posted on DU: December 09, 2009 By DU Member: madfloridian Views on DU: 1770

 
Neither of them were very sure just what the new AP breaking news meant as it had just come out during the interview. Dean indicates support for opening Medicare to age 55, but he also wishes it could be opened to more.

Dean said he was keeping close tabs on the Medicare opt in...as he did not want to be hung out to dry like he was before. Doesn't think Conrad and Ben Nelson will vote to keep healthcare from all these Americans, says in the end it doesn't matter what Olympia Snowe does as she won't vote for it anyway.

Says he thinks Kent Conrad is angling for more for his state in the deal, just like Landrieu did.

Says there has been enough grandstanding and theatrics, time to get the bill done right.

[TrollBuster9090]

1. Dean has reason to be smiling

This compromise might actually be much more clever than it appears.

From the start, Dean has advocated the idea of offering Medicare to everybody AS the Public Option. This makes sense for a number of reasons.

1.(As Dean mentioned) Since Medicare is already set up to handle claims, it's just a matter of expanding the existing organization, rather than trying to build a new one specifically to handle a Public Option.

2. Done this way, you can start signing up the 55 year olds in 2010 (hint: BEFORE the mid term elections) rather than having to wait until 2013 for anything to kick in and show a positive effect.

3. By offering this to the 55-65 crowd, you split off a huge block of the Republican support base, just in time for the 2010 elections.

5. If it works well for the 55-65 crowd (and it will, because 55-65 year olds have fewer health problems than the 65+ crowd, meaning the premium to payout ratio will only go up, making it more economical), then the 45 and up crowd will start demanding it, and then the 35 and up crowd, and before you know it Medicare WILL BE the Public Option, available to all age groups. Furthermore, the offer to include increasingly younger age groups into medicare will depend on electing Democrats, giving people extra incentive to vote for them. And every time a younger age group is added to Medicare it will become more economical because younger people have fewer health problems. (As it is now, government already pays for the most expensive 2/3rds of health care by only insuring the elderly, the poor, and the veterans; leaving the private HMOs to cherry pick the young and healthy clients.)

6. After having spent all summer hypocritically defending against cuts to Medicare, the Republicans will have an even harder time trying to oppose an EXPANSION of Medicare. (They'll do it, of course, because their followers don't care much about intellectual consistency to begin with. )

Opening up the possibility of a gradual expansion of Medicare is both good policy and good politics. Done right, it's just as good as a Public Option, and potentially better.

[madfloridian]

3. I agree. I hope they don't screw it up.

Welcome to DU...most unusual name.

:)

[TrollBuster9090]

5. THANK YOU!

Yeah, I just used my user name from Youtube for my DU handle. My brain isn't big enough to retain two pseudonyms.

[wryter2000]

9. Awesome analyis

Big welcome to DU. :applause:

[democracy1st]

2. K & R

[GreenTea]

4. Two extremely admirable liberal guys, Keith Olbermann & Howard Dean!

[Bette Noir]

6. I hope this turns out to be true.

Most of the people I love are over 55 (I'm close, myself). Some are uninsured; the rest are spending huge parts of their income for insurance (as much as $20,000/year). Lowering the age of eligibility for Medicare would solve many, many problems in my circle.

[Don Draper]

7. I curious to find out what the bill will do for people with pre-existing conditions

One of the huge problems with our current system is that it discriminates against people with "pre-existing" conditions. What are people under 55 supposed to do? How will this bill benefit the rest of us?

[madfloridian]

8. Pre-existing must be covered, but cost not regulated is my understanding.

Those of us who think more age groups should be covered are unfortunately not in Congress.

[wryter2000]

11. It won't help if costs aren't regulated

The insurance companies can make it available but too expensive for anyone with a pre-existing condition to buy.

Still, we have to wait until we hear all the details on this.

[wryter2000]

10. Welcome to DU

:hi:

Two great new DUers in this thread.

[madfloridian]

12. Wonder if Dean was misled on this before? Said he was "hung out to dry."

That was an interesting comment.