Wonkbook: Who will really win in an Obamacare repeal

By Steven Pearlstein In one of the latest rounds of government-by-tweet, Donald Trump has once again revealed that he doesn't have a clue about the markets for health care and health insurance. "Also, deductibles are so high that it is practically useless," wrote the president-elect on Wednesday about health insurance policies sold on the Obamacare exchanges. …   The latest economic and domestic policy from Wonkblog   President-elect Donald Trump with President Obama at the White House. (Michael Reynolds/EPA) By Steven Pearlstein In one of the latest rounds of government-by-tweet, Donald Trump has once again revealed that he doesn't have a clue about the markets for health care and health insurance. "Also, deductibles are so high that it is practically useless," wrote the president-elect on Wednesday about health insurance policies sold on the Obamacare exchanges. He also complained about "poor coverage" and "massive premium increases." Let's start with those high deductibles. Apparently Trump is unaware that the man he has tapped to dismantle Obamacare, Rep. Tom Price of George, wants to steer us all into such "high deductible" insurance plans, with routine care paid for by patients from individual tax-free health savings accounts. The reason Price and others like high-deductible policies is simple enough: They lower insurance premiums and give patients a strong financial incentive to consume only the routine care they need and shop around for the best value. But, as Price surely knows, it's not possible to lower deductibles and lower premiums at the same time. Trump faces the same dilemma when it comes to "poor coverage," by which he means the medical services that insurers are required to pay for. Obamacare required that all health insurance policies cover services such as maternity and newborn care, home health care, mental health services and treatment for drug addiction, birth control, preventive screening, nursing home and well-baby care. The law also prevents policies from setting annual or lifetime limits on how much medical care an insurer must cover. The effect of these mandated benefits was to push up premiums and outlaw the kind of "skinny" insurance policies favored by some cash-constrained consumers and employers. But Trump cannot make good on his promise to lower premiums with one hand while offering more comprehensive coverage with the other. In any market-driven system, you can't expect Trump International service at EconoLodge prices. This kind of fantasy thinking about health care — that we can have lower prices, better care, more choice and no mandates — permeates the Republican critique of Obamacare. ADVERTISEMENT   Read the rest on Wonkblog. Number of the day 10 cents. That was the increase in U.S. workers' average hourly earnings in December, according to the monthly report from the Bureau of Labor Statistics. It is the best figure for workers in seven years. Ana Swanson has more. Top policy tweets The big news in the jobs report: Wage growth. Average hourly earnings up 2.9% from year earlier. pic.twitter.com/I4Unp37ASe — Ben Casselman (@bencasselman) January 6, 2017 Since Donald Trump launched his presidential campaign, saying "there are no jobs," the U.S. economy has gained more than 3.6 million jobs. — Dan Diamond (@ddiamond) January 6, 2017 Black unemployment rate drops from 8.0% to 7.8%, lowest level since August, 2007. — Conor Sen (@conorsen) January 6, 2017 Here's the frustration people feel: Manufacturing lost 45K jobs in 2016, while 593K jobs were added in education and health services. — Betsey Stevenson (@BetseyStevenson) January 6, 2017 NB: It's not hypocrisy to be less excited about fiscal stimulus when unemployment is low and interest rates aren't zero. — Matthew Yglesias (@mattyglesias) January 6, 2017 Most Recent Posts from Wonkblog Who will really win in an Obamacare repeal Obamacare involves a huge income transfer to the old, the poor and the sick. So repealing it would give a massive subsidy to the young, the healthy and the rich. By Steven Pearlstein  •  Read more »   U.S. added 156,000 jobs in December; unemployment rate ticked up to 4.7 percent The final jobs report of President Obama's administration marks the 75th straight month of growth. By Ana Swanson  •  Read more »   America’s $6.7 billion marijuana habit, mapped The latest federal statistics show 36 million Americans over the age of 12 smoked weed last year. By Christopher Ingraham  •  Read more »   If someone doesn't like immigrants, ask them this question Surprisingly, the truth works sometimes. By Jeff Guo  •  Read more »   Only 1 in 5 Americans supports Republicans’ 'repeal and delay' Obamacare strategy By Carolyn Y. Johnson  •  Read more »   Donald Trump just threatened Toyota — but it looks like he got the facts wrong In a tweet, he threatens the Japanese automaker with a border tax. By Ylan Q. Mui  •  Read more »   Why Obamacare’s insurance marketplaces won’t necessarily collapse with a repeal An Obamacare 'repeal' could leave the law largely intact for years. By Carolyn Y. Johnson  •  Read more »   Study: Hiring more black cops won’t stop fatal police shootings of black citizens Hiring more black officers could lead to even more violent interactions — at least until a critical mass is reached By Tracy Jan  •  Read more »   ADVERTISEMENT   Recommended for you   Federal Insider Federal news and policy update, in your inbox daily. 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. 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