Wonkette
Ever tried to get health insurance from someone other than an employer? Then you know that the system fucking sucks. Every state is different, every company is different, the rules are completely obtuse and the market for self-insured people is so small that we all get screwed on options and pricing. It’s part of the reason there are 47 million Americans (and one Wonketteer) without health insurance coverage. And what do your Republican Presidential candidates want to do about it? Tax breaks!
The difficulty with giving tax breaks to people to buy their own health insurance if they aren’t covered by an employer, as McCain, Giuliani, Romney and Thompson have suggested, is that a tax break doesn’t necessarily help you buy coverage, particularly if you have a preexisting medical condition. Preexisting conditions make it expensive and/or impossible to obtain coverage because health insurance companies want to keep their costs down (and profits up) by insuring those of us who generally pay more in insurance than we do in medical bills. So, they either charge out the ass if you’re not healthy or just refuse to insure you. What can be done about it (besides making health care a function of government, as the Democratic candidates are suggesting)? Well… basically, force them not to screw people over (i.e., regulate). Republicans aren’t so keen on that.
But tax breaks appeal to the base! And sound Republican-y! Not that any of that helps me if I get in a car accident tomorrow. Sometimes, I’m pretty sure they’re all just screwing with us. No, wait. That’s all the time.
