Healthcare

The Cheap Public Option

Following up on Michele Bachmann's quote below, I thought I'd do some math today.

I clicked over to one of those health insurance shopping sites, entered my family's information (family of three, non-smokers) and the top rated, best selling plan on the site showed a $476 monthly premium with a $250 deductible, 10% co-insurance, and $20 doctor's visits.

A government plan that's 40% cheaper, as Bachmann noted, would cost around $286 per month -- a $190 discount. It wouldn't exclude us for preexisting conditions. It wouldn't randomly deny us coverage. It wouldn't conspire to cancel our coverage as soon as we got sick. And we could take it with us wherever we go.

However, the public option would function similarly to Medicare which carries a $96 monthly premium per person for a married couple making less that $170,000 a year. There's a $135 deductible and a 20% co-insurance.

(Incidentally, the absolute most expensive Medicare premium is $308 per month -- paid by couples earning a massive $500,000 a year.)

But the public option isn't just about the low premium, it's about the security. It's about knowing that you're paying into a system that will always be there.