Krugman Nails it Again

Toady, he's writing about the Medicare vote, and he writes about the underlying issues, not the drama of Kennedy showing up to break a filibuster.

Specifically, he notes that in 2003, Bush and His Evil Minions^™ got the so called Medicare Modernization Act though congress, and a big part of it was a very poison pill, large subsidies for the private insurer run Medicare Advantage.

Because these plans are heavily subsidized, they suck money out of the program, making a fiscal crisis even worse.

Because these plans require larger premiums, they also exclude the poor.

So you create a two tiered system, where the rich tier sucks the marrow out of the poor tier.

Basic Republican social programs: Reverse Robin Hood.

Krugman is also far more sanguine about the possibility of real reform next year, because the Dems held together, and the Republicans caved when hit with the full force of the AMA over the July 4th weekend.

Me, I'm more of a pessimist. My goals are less extreme. Just remove the preemption clause from ERISA, and let the states compete, and businesses will migrate to places where they aren't shafted by the healthcare system.