Affraudable Healthcare? Hardly.

This was a mildly entertaining read over on Dkos. The post is ever so cleverly titled "AfFRAUDable Healthcare," because the writer views it as deceivingly expensive since the most basic plans also have heavy deductibles. However, the writer also ignores key facts, such as:

• The most basic plans will cost a lot less than expected, at about $170 in the Boston area for the 35-37 bracket (the average age of people in this state without insurance is 37).
• Younger people, who earn less, will also have cheaper plans available (and are more likely to be subsidized).
• There are other plans available without the burdensome deductibles.
• A huge portion of people who will get health care through the state will have heavily subsidized rates; many people that don't need to be subsidized could probably afford the better plans.

Don't get me wrong; I'm not saying this health care plan is perfect. However, it's a start - a pretty good one at that. Not only could it save this state money in the long run, it could just save hundreds of lives every year - and if it does that, it can't be a bad thing. This new health care plan isn't a fraud; it's the start of a new beginning in Massachusetts.

Update: According to this commenter, who uses NPR's CommonHealth as a source, regular check-ups and other preventative care visits will have low or no-cost deductibles - which means that the high deductibles for the basic plans would hardly be a constraint for most people. That's good news if I've ever heard any (and my, Deval got us a sweet deal out of his negotiations if that's true.)