Details about Baucus Health Care Bill Emerge

The WSJ has this:

To pay for the plan, there are across-the-board fees not just for health insurers but also for pharmaceutical manufacturers, medical device makers and clinical laboratories. The hits are likely to arouse industry concerns, although companies also have a lot to gain from a health bill that expands coverage to millions of uninsured.

Like other bills, the proposal from Baucus, chairman of the Finance Committee, would require most people to carry health insurance. But it slaps higher penalties on those who refuse, ranging from $750 for the poorest single people to as high as $3,800 a year for families. By contrast, employers wouldn’t be required to provide coverage for employees. They would only have to pay a contribution for employees who get tax credits to buy individual insurance.

Doctors may be irked by some of the payment changes in the Baucus plan. In particular, one measure seeks to give primary-care doctors higher Medicare payments, and funding it by cutting payments to other doctors. . . .

The text of the proposal is here.

abudzar