Wonkbook: Why the GOP really is seeking to pass this health care bill

By Matt O'Brien The Senate health-care plan isn't a health-...   The latest economic and domestic policy from Wonkblog   Demonstrators hold signs during a healthcare rally opposing the American Health Care Act (AHCA) bill on Capitol Hill in Washington, D.C., U.S., on Wednesday, June 21, 2017. One of the Senate Republicans charged with negotiating an Obamacare replacement expressed frustration Tuesday with the secret process, saying that even he hasn't seen the proposal set to be released in two days for a possible floor vote next week. Photographer: Zach Gibson/Bloomberg By Matt O'Brien The Senate health-care plan isn't a health-care plan. It's a tax cut. That's clear enough from how little thought it puts into actually stabilizing insurance markets versus how much it does into showering the rich with as much money as possible. Indeed, it would go so far as to retroactively cut the capital gains tax — something, remember, that's supposed to be about incentivizing future investment — in an apparent bid to get people to create jobs six months ago. The way it would slash Medicaid to pay for this tax-cutting largesse, though, is even more important. It would be more than just a transfer of wealth from the poor and sick to the rich and healthy. It would be a transfer of financial risk from the government to individuals. This isn't about keeping taxes low for our time. This is about keeping taxes low for all time. The easiest way to think about all this is that Republicans are trying to solve two problems. The first is that they want to be able to say they did something to get rid of Obamacare, and the second is that they want to keep health-care spending from growing the government down the road. Viewed from this perspective, the Senate bill checks both boxes. ADVERTISEMENT   Read more on Wonkblog. Chart of the day         From "The amount of work that once bought an hour of light now buys 51 years of it," by Christopher Ingraham. Most Recent Posts from Wonkblog Grover Norquist complained his daughter had to pay sales tax on her guitar. Twitter said he had forgotten a few things. And a few other things the Internet wants Grover Norquist to explain to his daughter. By Elizabeth Winkler  •  Read more »   Maine tried to raise its minimum wage. Restaurant workers didn't want it. Some cried with relief when their wages were lowered back down to $4.50 an hour. By Caitlin Dewey  •  Read more »   A person making $11,400 in 2026 will face a deductible that’s more than half their income It's not just the 22 million people who lose coverage. Poor people will be saddled with higher deductibles. By Carolyn Y. Johnson  •  Read more »   Yes, the GOP health-care plan really is a giant Medicaid cut — in one chart Apologies to Kellyanne Conway and others. By Christopher Ingraham  •  Read more »   The Trump administration says CBO can’t be trusted because its Obamacare predictions were wrong. Are they right? Some Republicans claim that the CBO whiffed so badly on Obamacare it can't be trusted to evaluate their bill. Are they right? By Max Ehrenfreund  •  Read more »   Scientists discover DNA might not be that useful as part of your checkup The DNA age is here. But what are we supposed to do with the information? By Carolyn Y. Johnson  •  Read more »   Legalized marijuana is making it harder for police to search your car Some departments could face financial difficulties as a result. By Christopher Ingraham  •  Read more »   Middle East turmoil is disrupting a vital resource for nuclear energy, space flight and birthday balloons Qatar supplies more than a quarter of the world's helium, but it can't get shipments out. By Ana Swanson  •  Read more »   ADVERTISEMENT   Recommended for you   The Finance 202 Your daily guide to where Wall Street meets Washington. Sign Up »         Share Wonkbook:       Twitter      Facebook Trouble reading? Click here to view in your browser. You received this email because you signed up for a Wonkblog newsletter. For additional free newsletters or to manage your newsletters, click here. We respect your privacy. If you believe that this email has been sent to you in error or you no longer wish to receive email from The Washington Post, click here. Contact us for help. ©2017 The Washington Post, 1301 K St NW, Washington DC 20071