tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15133926.post114436057911844355..comments2023-10-10T06:51:06.526-04:00Comments on Ryan's Take: The New Health Bill: A Band-Aid, Not a CureRyanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04523572927796479670noreply@blogger.comBlogger4125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15133926.post-1144466865664624532006-04-07T23:27:00.000-04:002006-04-07T23:27:00.000-04:00You're right. He deserves some credit, for good or...You're right. He deserves some credit, for good or bad. I just don't think we should let him campaign on it and pretend he was a great governor because of this one big bill that came at the end of his term.Ryanhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04523572927796479670noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15133926.post-1144440465733582702006-04-07T16:07:00.000-04:002006-04-07T16:07:00.000-04:00Ryan, I say if Mitt signs a bill that covers more ...Ryan, I say if Mitt signs a bill that covers more people, give him credit. If the personal mandate turns out to be horrible (and the self-employed people I know will find it very difficult), then he'll get blame.<BR/><BR/>A bunch of Massachusetts libs saying Romney did something right isn't exactly going to endear him to the right-wing peanut gallery. :)Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15133926.post-1144426809715578282006-04-07T12:20:00.000-04:002006-04-07T12:20:00.000-04:00I'm not fundamentally opposed to the personal mand...I'm not fundamentally opposed to the personal mandate, but it would stand to reason that the businesses who aren't providing health insurance aren't going to start doing so until a mandate of their own would compel them. It would have to be balanced with the costs of health insurance versus the PR hit of not giving their employees health insurance and the cost of a penalty.<BR/><BR/>I think that if the penalty were along the lines of 30-50% of the cost of a basic health insurance, it would go a long way toward making sure the state can afford to actually have to increase access... and it would force businesses to actually pay their fair share or face still consequences.Ryanhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04523572927796479670noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15133926.post-1144426115694790722006-04-07T12:08:00.000-04:002006-04-07T12:08:00.000-04:00I'm sympathetic to the claim that farmers and the ...I'm sympathetic to the claim that farmers and the self-employed may be unfairly squeezed by this compromise. And I'm very familiar with the east v. west resentment that commenter <B>farmerchuck</B> voiced to your dKos commentary. It's as real here in western Massachusetts as it is in Kansas. The <A HREF="http://www.chcfc.org/" REL="nofollow">Community Health Center of Franklin County</A> has been working on health care and the plight of the rural poor for some time, setting up clinics in regional high schools and visiting migrant farm workers. I agree that the new compromise is not a cure. But I'd like to think, rather than a Band-Aid (meant to cover up a problem), it is a prescription that may ease some symptoms and allow for further treatment. I'm skeptical of the individual mandate as well, but a broad-based solution meant bringing as many people to the table as possible, to give them incentive to help make the system work. The employer mandate is part of that incentive, too.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.com