Home

Good for the Exchanges, Good for Medicare

October 09, 2013
9:37 am

Let’s set aside for the moment the glitches taking place with the Affordable Care Act health exchange websites.  It provides grist for late-night comedians, but we can presume the software problems will be fixed.  Besides, there are more important aspects of the exchange that warrant attention and discussion.

There was an analysis by Bloomberg Government published yesterday that shouldn’t escape notice.  Bloomberg found that competition between health insurance plans within the state-based insurance exchanges is driving down costs, by as much as one-third.  Bloomberg found what it called an “unmistakable pattern” – the more insurers operating in a given market, the lower the price of coverage for consumers.

Now, let’s stipulate that it’s early in the process and we don’t yet know how rates will be affected over time, particularly if the Administration is not successful in bringing young, healthy, currently uninsured Americans into the health coverage marketplace.  Nonetheless, the linkage between competition and a downward push on prices is significant.

This evidence should be considered in discussions about Medicare’s future.  It’s ironic that some of the same politicians who are praising the success of the ACA exchanges in making insurance affordable don’t want to improve Medicare by opening it up to more competition between private plans.

That’s an unsustainable argument.  The Medicare Trustees report confirms each year that the program will face insolvency unless there are changes made to the status quo.  Congress and future Administrations can continue to squeeze down on what Medicare pays for healthcare goods and services – thus having a negative impact on both healthcare access and quality – or it can look at the Bloomberg study, among others, and see the benefits that can be gained from competition and consumer choice.

You can’t praise the apparent success of the exchanges, but then take a ‘preserve Medicare as we know it’ position.  That falls short as both good logic and good policy.

63 Responses to “Good for the Exchanges, Good for Medicare”

  1. Izhhcf Says:

    purchase albuterol pill albuterol inhalator generic albuterol inhalator cost

  2. Yrpwqk Says:

    buy tizanidine for sale zanaflex where to buy order tizanidine 2mg

  3. Lagmrh Says:

    order prednisone 20mg generic cheap deltasone 20mg deltasone 10mg uk

  4. Cxuyrh Says:

    buy absorica online cheap isotretinoin 10mg pills order accutane 10mg pills

  5. Qqpcxi Says:

    amoxicillin 500mg for sale amoxicillin 250mg uk cost amoxicillin 1000mg

  6. Tscwnb Says:

    buy asthma pills ventolin pill albuterol 4mg cost

  7. Muvvqf Says:

    zithromax order online zithromax 500mg brand buy azithromycin pill

  8. Ekbpuv Says:

    augmentin online order clavulanate pill order augmentin 375mg sale

  9. Vuuuvo Says:

    omnacortil generic buy omnacortil 10mg online cheap buy omnacortil 40mg generic

  10. Faaala Says:

    synthroid 75mcg us brand levoxyl levothyroxine canada

  11. Gpkoxp Says:

    cheap neurontin 800mg neurontin online order order generic neurontin

  12. Eshrpa Says:

    order clomiphene for sale order clomid 50mg pills serophene online

  13. Dxsvin Says:

    buy generic lasix online buy lasix 40mg for sale buy lasix 100mg

  14. Cdltiz Says:

    doxycycline 200mg sale order vibra-tabs without prescription order vibra-tabs generic

  15. Vnyoqv Says:

    sildenafil overnight cheap viagra 100mg viagra for men over 50

  16. Zvugou Says:

    online casinos usa jackpot party casino play casino slots

  17. Itcnlr Says:

    rybelsus 14mg canada order rybelsus 14mg generic semaglutide order

  18. Csuyvu Says:

    order triamcinolone without prescription purchase triamcinolone sale buy aristocort 4mg sale

  19. Gxdqrd Says:

    plaquenil 400mg brand plaquenil 200mg pill plaquenil uk

  20. Oqojwx Says:

    desloratadine 5mg generic clarinex 5mg over the counter generic desloratadine

  21. Uppdda Says:

    buy cialis 10mg cialis generic name tadalafil order

  22. Tduyrv Says:

    oral claritin buy claritin 10mg without prescription claritin online buy

  23. Wkutqg Says:

    cenforce cost cenforce oral cheap cenforce 100mg

  24. Zuyawl Says:

    buy priligy without a prescription priligy online order order cytotec 200mcg generic

  25. Qjamif Says:

    chloroquine generic aralen 250mg price aralen price

  26. Zoqooh Says:

    orlistat price orlistat price diltiazem 180mg tablet

  27. Fdxgrd Says:

    order glucophage 1000mg online cheap metformin 500mg cost buy glycomet without a prescription

  28. Vtgthz Says:

    oral acyclovir 800mg buy allopurinol online allopurinol 100mg uk

  29. Bltmqs Says:

    norvasc 5mg sale amlodipine 5mg drug amlodipine 10mg pills

  30. Bbysyl Says:

    rosuvastatin over the counter crestor brand zetia sale

  31. Zkywoe Says:

    lisinopril tablet zestril 10mg without prescription buy generic zestril

  32. Lvqtzl Says:

    motilium tablet brand sumycin tetracycline order online

  33. Gjixkc Says:

    buy prilosec without prescription prilosec tablet order omeprazole 10mg pill

  34. Dqgpmi Says:

    cyclobenzaprine ca baclofen 25mg cost purchase lioresal pills

  35. Ixnoxk Says:

    generic metoprolol 100mg order lopressor 100mg metoprolol 100mg over the counter

  36. Tilizg Says:

    ketorolac cheap colcrys buy online buy generic colchicine online

  37. Fyxlwm Says:

    tenormin generic buy generic atenolol tenormin for sale online

  38. Ueplht Says:

    buy cheap depo-medrol buy medrol without prescription depo-medrol cheap

  39. Eecirp Says:

    inderal pill clopidogrel usa purchase clopidogrel for sale

  40. Qfgeme Says:

    buy methotrexate 10mg without prescription order methotrexate 5mg generic coumadin order

  41. Bdmthf Says:

    best website for writing essays research papers writing cheap research papers for sale

  42. Ajgdkt Says:

    buy metoclopramide for sale losartan canada oral losartan 25mg

  43. Ibyhtk Says:

    how to buy mobic purchase meloxicam pill celebrex 100mg price

  44. Lzhewb Says:

    how to buy esomeprazole esomeprazole 40mg uk order topamax 100mg sale

  45. Pyblih Says:

    order flomax 0.2mg generic cost tamsulosin celebrex over the counter

  46. Itwjye Says:

    sumatriptan uk levofloxacin 500mg without prescription levaquin 250mg ca

  47. Ngalxn Says:

    order ondansetron 8mg sale order aldactone 100mg online cheap aldactone 100mg generic

  48. Ffigyb Says:

    avodart ca cheap avodart 0.5mg zantac tablet

  49. Jkkwqo Says:

    zocor generic order valacyclovir 1000mg for sale purchase valtrex without prescription

  50. Oxhpcl Says:

    buy ampicillin tablets penicillin brand amoxil for sale online

  51. Qymrfw Says:

    finpecia without prescription where to buy propecia without a prescription purchase fluconazole pill

  52. Xczjch Says:

    buy generic baycip – ethambutol pills augmentin 625mg uk

  53. Bjzyhf Says:

    order ciprofloxacin 500mg – cost myambutol buy generic augmentin for sale

  54. Ouqqwp Says:

    cheap metronidazole – cleocin for sale online zithromax 500mg ca

  55. Exeipb Says:

    ciprofloxacin over the counter – buy amoxicillin pills
    erythromycin ca

  56. Ojliuq Says:

    valacyclovir 1000mg generic – nemasole sale buy zovirax 800mg online cheap

  57. Ahoelx Says:

    ivermectin 6mg pills – buy generic sumycin 500mg sumycin 500mg drug

  58. Alybul Says:

    buy metronidazole generic – buy amoxicillin generic buy azithromycin 250mg pill

  59. Wkhxvb Says:

    buy ampicillin generic buy doxycycline without a prescription buy amoxil generic

  60. Pxcrni Says:

    order furosemide 100mg online – order capoten online captopril 25 mg over the counter

  61. Laneki Says:

    glucophage 500mg without prescription – buy glycomet 1000mg without prescription lincocin 500mg ca

  62. Aafdqo Says:

    retrovir 300 mg without prescription – order glycomet generic purchase allopurinol generic

  63. Yaqcmt Says:

    clozapine 100mg us – ramipril 10mg usa famotidine uk

Leave a Reply