Daily News Updates - Health Insurance News

Analyzing the Divergence, Pt.9 – Mr. Oberlander’s assessment of Mr. McCain’s plan.

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Noted health economist expert, associate professor of social medicine and health policy, Jonathan B. Oberlander of UNC at Chapel Hill provides us with some further insight. He explains that McCain’s plan does offer “a more flexible, portable insurance system that makes consumers more mindful of skyrocketing costs.” One problem, however, is that it does little to address the actual crisis. That crisis is concerning those without health insurance, those with inadequate health insurance and those who can’t get health insurance due to chronic and pre-existing conditions. As he explains: "Most people who are uninsured would remain uninsured."

The Brookings Institution, along with other well-respected research organizations confer on the most-expected outcomes concerning the crisis that would result from Mr. McCain’s implementation. From independent studies they have all concluded that the initial impact would be to cover about 1 million of the 45.7 million now uninsured, in 2009. By 2013, this figure may rise as high as 5 million. But, as the increasing health insurance costs far exceed the rate of inflationary adjustments, the number of those removed from the uninsured segment will end up falling back to a reduction of only 1 million covered, leaving 44.7 still with no health insurance.

With all this in mind, general assessments by the analysts concur that Mr. McCain’s proposal has little chance of surviving a Democratic Congress. It has been indicated that the McCain camp view the health insurance/care crisis as being a “minor issue” (McCain’s own words).

Certainly this explains the vagueness. What will happen to health insurance, should Mr. McCain become our next president is almost indeterminate.

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