📣 WASHINGTON STATE: @WAPlanFinder announces 182K #ACA exchange enrollees in first 4 days...for a simple reason:
acasignups.net/20/11/13/washi…
acasignups.net/20/11/13/washi…
The Washington #ACA exchange also announced that 30% of *new* enrollees have selected the new "Cascade Care" policies...aka the much-touted Public Option plans.
It's worth noting that this only amounts to around 720 people so far...but it's early yet.
It's worth noting that this only amounts to around 720 people so far...but it's early yet.
WA's new quasi-Public Option is an important step, but it doesn't magically slash healthcare costs in half...because the main expense isn't on the *carrier* side, it's on the *provider rate* side. I watched this play out in real time last year: acasignups.net/19/04/29/washi…
When WA first proposed a PO, they originally planned on paying doctors/hospitals Medicare rates. That changed when they realized that hardly any docs/hospitals would contract with the PO at those rates. They bumped it up to 110%, 130%...finally settling on 160% of Medicare.
In the end, WA's PO plans *are* a somewhat better deal...they just aren't *dramatically* less expensive than the private competition.
This is a point which M4All activists often point out...except that M4All would have the same problem to tackle on a much larger scale.
This is a point which M4All activists often point out...except that M4All would have the same problem to tackle on a much larger scale.
With a PO, it's difficult to pay Medicare rates because private carriers are paying providers ~60%+ more.
With M4All, it's difficult to make it significantly less expensive because providers will fight like hell against being paid ~35% less.
With M4All, it's difficult to make it significantly less expensive because providers will fight like hell against being paid ~35% less.
I discussed this in a blog post 3 years ago which remains, to this day, one of the pieces I'm proudest of (and it wasn't even written for my own site): cracked.com/blog/a-zero-b.…
"If you tell anyone you're about to cut their income by 20%, they're gonna be cranky about it. Now, you may think that doctors are overpaid as it is...but they're not likely to see it that way any more than the insurance broker who's being kicked to the curb."
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