<<  <  >  >>

34. Kenneth Thorpe, "An Analysis of the Costs and

UploadedPDF/1000548_TaxFacts_080403.pdf.

Coverage Associated with Blue Shield of California's

21. Nina Olsen, "National Taxpayer Advocate 2003

Universal Health Insurance Plan for All Americans,"

Annual Report to Congress," Taxpayer Advocate

Emory University, June 11, 2003.

Service, December 31, 2003, http://www.irs.gov/

35. Scott S. Greenberger, "Romney Eyes Penalties

pub/irs-utl/nta_2003_annual_update_mcw_1-15-

for Those Lacking Insurance," Boston Globe, June

042.pdf

22, 2005, citing estimates from the Blue Cross­

22. Michael Calabrese and Laurie Rubiner, "Universal

Blue Shield Foundation.

Coverage, Universal Responsibility: A Roadmap to

36. Calabrese and Rubiner.

Make Coverage Affordable for All Americans," New

America Foundation Universal Health Insurance

37. Blue Shield Association of California, "Blue

Program Working Paper no. 1, January 2004, p. 4,

Shield Offers Healthcare Plan for Universal Cover-

http://www.newamerica.net/Download_Docs/pdfs/

age with Universal Responsibility," news release,

Pub_File_1443_1.pdf.

December 3, 2002. See also Kenneth Thorpe, "An

Analysis of the Costs and Coverage Associated with

23. Lyle Nelson, "How Many People Lack Health

Blue Shield of California's Universal Health In-

Insurance and for How Long?" Congressional

surance Plan for All Americans," Blue Shield

Budget Office, May 12, 2003.

Association of California, June 11, 2003.

24. C. Eugene Steuerle, "Implementing Employer

38. There is less to that claim than meets the eye,

and Individual Mandates," Health Affairs (Spring

however. Plans would still be required to use com-

II, 1994): 62.

munity rating, retain some--though not all--of the

25. DeNavas-Walt, Proctor, and Lee, Table 7, p. 18.

state's mandated benefits, and cap deductibles at

$1,000. That is far from a high deductible in a high-

26. Steuerle.

tech, high-cost health care state like Massachusetts.

Indeed, it is estimated that half of all Massachusetts

27. Office of the Governor, "Massachusetts Health

residents would meet this deductible. Arnold Kling,

Care Reform," PowerPoint presentation; see also

"Wrong State for Market-Based Health Insurance,"

Edmund Haislmaier, "Mitt's Fit," National Review

EconLog, November 26, 2005.

Online, January 27, 2006, http://www.nationalre

view.com/comment/haislmaier200601271110.asp.

39. Amy Lambiaso, "Details of Ambitious Health

Care Access Plans Begin to Emerge," Massachusetts

28. "2005 Personal Income Tax Filing Season

State House News Service, September 1, 2005.

Information," Commonwealth of Massachusetts

Department of Revenue, http://www.massdor.com

40. Greenberger.

/options/filingseasoninfo.htm.

41. Butler, "The Heritage Foundation Proposal,"

29. "The Uninsured: A Primer, Key Facts about

p. 18.

Americans without Health Insurance," Kaiser

Family Foundation, December 2003

42. Victoria Craig Bunce and J. P. Wieske, "Health

Insurance Mandates in the States: 2005," Council

30. Calabrese and Rubiner, p. 5.

for Affordable Health Insurance, January 2005,

http://www.cahi.org/cahi_contents/resources/pd

31. Julie Appleby, "Average Family Health Policy

f/MandatePubDec2004.pdf.

Nears $11,000," USA Today, September 14, 2005.

Of course for most people much or all of this cost

43. Ibid.

is hidden, paid by their employer. But people who

do not receive employer-paid health insurance--

44. Oregon Health Services Commission, "Prioriti-

the subjects of an individual mandate--would

zation of Health Services: A Report to the Governor

have to bear the cost themselves.

and Legislature," 1991.

32. For example, the average cost of an HAS-quali-

45. U.S. Office of Technology Assessment, Evaluation

fied family policy is roughly $7,900. "Employer

of the Oregon Medicaid Proposal, 1992, quoted in Jon-

Health Benefits 2005 Annual Survey," Kaiser

athan Oberlander, Theodore Marmor, and Law-

Family Foundation, p. 97, http://kff.org/insurance

rence Jacobs, "Rationing Medical Care: Rhetoric and

/7315/upload/7315.pdf.

Reality in the Oregon Health Plan," Canadian Medical

Association Journal 164, no. 11 (May 29, 2001): 1586.

33. Michael F. Cannon, "Medicaid's Unseen Costs,"

Cato Institute Policy Analysis no. 548, August 18,

46. Elliot Wicks, "Purchasing Pools in a System of

2005.

Universal Coverage: Facilitating Consumer Choice,"

11