Legal Commentary

Private Health Insurance In Decline

By Big Tent Democrat

Matt Yglesias writes:

Th[e] decline in private health insurance coverage has, however, been entirely offset by an increase in the number of working age people on Medicaid, which stood at 13 percent in 2008. Among the under-18 set, private insurance is even rarer and public coverage even more common, since children are both poorer-than-average and politically easier to cover. In terms of causation, my understanding is that this is a blend of Medicaid “crowding out” private coverage and Medicaid filling a gap in private insurance’s affordability. The Affordable Care Act is going to continue this trend by substantially expanding Medicaid coverage.

Rising unemployment and reduction in employment benefits likely explains the decline in private health insurance and the attendant rise in Medicaid coverage. I am an advocate for public insurance programs over the market based regulatory model of ObamaCare, but I hope we don;t get the increase in public insurance participation at the cost of people's jobs. But, you never know, the Exchanges might not even be an issue come 2014 the way things are going in the economy.

Speaking for me only

Full post as published by TalkLeft on August 19, 2010 (boomark / email).