November 02, 2010
David Brooks, who made himself famous by turning the financial crisis into a “fiscal crisis,” is back at game playing today. He outlines some of the main features of the Republicans’ agenda assuming they get control of the House.
One of the items listed is the repeal of a provision in the health care reform bill that would require a business to file a 1099 every time they bought more than $600 of goods and services from an individual or business. While the Republicans will likely make this change, what Brooks doesn’t tell readers is that Democrats would also. This was a provision that shoved into the lengthy bill that its proponents recognized as excessive almost immediately after it was passed. It would have already been repealed had the Republicans not blocked action in order to give themselves an election issue.
The other misleading item featured on Brooks’ rather limited agenda for the Republicans is that they will take steps to make health care costs predictable for business. Brooks is revealing either his ignorance or his dishonesty with this one. He obviously is implying that the health care plan makes cost unpredictable for business. In fact, health care costs are already unpredictable for business.
Except in states where regulation prevents it, insurers can change what they charge businesses for health care as much as they feel like. While businesses can change insurers, this is time-consuming and the prices are very unpredictable (there are no price lists — firms must go through an underwriting process). The Republicans have no plan that will make health care costs predictable for business. In fact, if they eliminate the insurance regulation in the health care reform bill then they will almost certainly be making costs less predictable.
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