How Are We Still Fighting About Obamacare?

"There isn't any literature showing that the reverse is true, Gruber told me, saying he could not think of a single "compelling empirical study" demonstrating that lower health-care costs drove up wages. But that doesn't mean it doesn't happen. It seemed to happen in the 1990s, when wages surged and health spending slowed. It seems to be happening now, quietly flushing billions of dollars into workers' pockets."

"If Congress does not extend the subsidies, a lot more Americans will have to forgo care. Even if it does, hundreds of thousands of Americans will still go bankrupt when they get sick. Washington could-and should-do much more to cut costs and squeeze inefficiencies out of the system. Enroll more people in Medicaid and Medicare. Allow the government to negotiate drug prices and set the cost of hospital procedures. Tackle the underinsurance crisis. Promote telemedicine and outpatient care. Limit premium increases. And more."

There is no clear empirical evidence that lower health-care costs directly raise wages, though periods like the 1990s suggest a possible connection when wages rose as health spending slowed. Many Americans still face high out-of-pocket costs, large co-pays, and deductibles, and visible medical prices continue to grow even after inflation. High prices cause people to avoid care. If subsidies lapse, more people will forgo treatment, and many will still face bankruptcy from illness. Policy options include expanding Medicaid and Medicare enrollment, drug-price negotiation, hospital cost setting, addressing underinsurance, promoting telemedicine and outpatient care, and limiting premium increases, but political obstacles constrain major reform.

Read at The Atlantic