Remember How Conservatives Say Private Insurance Plans Save Money Over Government Plans?

Well That’s True if One Disregards the Data

A key element of Republican doctrine is that the government is inefficient at everything and that the private sector is better for everything.  Thus the thinking goes that government should get out of the health insurance business and leave it up to the private sector, where costs will be lower.

Of course none of the data supports such a position.  This is simply faith based policy.  And here’s another example.  Arkansas and Ohio are exploring whether or not the new Medicaid expansion could be done by using private plans.  But there is one small issue here.

The nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office has estimated the average annual cost of federal subsidies for private insurance for a low-income person at $9,000 when the health-care law takes full effect, while Medicaid only comes to $6,000. Arkansas lawmakers said they were working on their own estimates.

Oh, that.