The ideas of economists and political philosophers, both when they are right and when they are wrong, are more powerful than is commonly understood. Indeed the world is ruled by little else.
(The Moral Trigger)
Here is episode four of my new podcast, which I co-host with Mike Skinner. We dig through the news of the week in “The Lede,” discuss big ideas in “Beyond the Lede,” and in “The Backpages” recommend classic short stories.
(Source: SoundCloud / The Moral Trigger)
Like Plato’s republic ruled by philosophers, the market parable is dangerously alluring. It demands policies that strive for a utopian future—a future we can never approach because it lacks any reality—and meanwhile delivers disaster. Economies are so complex that we do not know much about them, but we know at least one thing. From the late-nineteenth to the late-twentieth centuries, the best economic minds tried to make the market parable work and failed by their own criteria. It does not work. Without quite knowing why, populists on left and right, sometimes reactionary, sometimes quixotic, demand that society step in to create a fairer economy. Until serious politicians accept that responsibility, we are in for a long, dark night.
I co-host a new podcast: Beyond the Lede
Hey everyone, long time no tumblr. I’ll be back on here posting - more or less - in the same fashion as I used to. Book excerpts, opinions, quotes, links to articles, music, and so on.
Check out my podcast at this feed (for a few more weeks, then we will have our own feed): The Moral Trigger
Kelsi Answers Your Questions
I’m turning 26 – what are my options for coverage if I’m not employed full time!
- Insurance through
your job/ trade groupSome trade associations will offer members health insurance similar to how employer-sponsored health insurance works. Not sure if you belong to any, but it may be worth investigating. This stems from the historical role of unions.
Insurance through a spouse- Purchase insurance on the marketplace / exchange
Created by the ACA, the marketplace is a sort of host where insurance companies can offer different plans for consumers. There are 4 different levels of plans on the marketplace: bronze, silver, gold, and platinum. Better coverage = more money; they vary by cost and coverage. Depending on income, you may be eligible for a premium tax credit and/or additional savings on out-of-pocket costs.
Prior to the ACA, consumers largely got insurance through their employer and/or spouse; if they didn’t have those options, then they had to turn to the individual market. The individual market operated like auto insurance does today: companies offer plans. The individual market was often extraordinarily expensive and consequently, only people who really needed insurance bought individual plans (i.e., the chronically ill or people with chronic conditions), which drove up the price even more.
The underlying theory of insurance rests in the idea of shared risk – the individual market stunk because everyone in that ‘shared market’ was high risk. The ACA sought to correct this by broadening the ‘shared market’ to include more health people, driving down risk and costs.
For arguments sake let’s say you’re a 26 y/o female making $20k a year living in Webster Groves, under the ACA you’d be eligible for $166/month (1,992/year) in tax credits which would bring down your premium cost for a silver plan to $83/month. Whenever you sought care, for certain services there might be cost-sharing so that’s an added charge on top of the monthly premium (e.g., I go to my doc for a cold and pay a $20 co-pay and my insurance picks up the tab for the rest of the cost of the appointment).
Right now, it looks like there are 13 different silver options for our hypothetical scenario. Take a look here to run through more hypotheticals. Note: for many individuals, there will be fewer options among types of plans as some health insurers have pulled back from or dropped out of the marketplace.
If the AHCA (American Health Care Act) passes, you can kiss the ACA tax credits good-bye. The feds had also arranged to lower cost-sharing for the public by providing $$$s to the insurance companies so your copays / coinsurance / deductibles will also go up.
Now, good news the marketplace appears to stay open. You would be eligible for a $2,000 one-time tax credit to go towards the cost of your health insurance premiums (the credits are determined by age under the AHCA and you’re in the 25-29).
This is great, it’s more than what you would’ve gotten on ‘Obamacare’. Right? Wrong! Yes, you’re getting more tax credit value but the question is what will you be able to buy with that tax credit? Insurance under the AHCA is guaranteed to offer poorer coverage at higher prices (CBO analysis). That same plan $83/month plan you would’ve bought under the ACA, well the premium is now more expensive, your plan doesn’t cover certain procedures/prescriptions/treatments that it used to, and the cost-sharing is higher.
Is it still worthwhile to buy insurance? Hmm. My initial answer was yes, but after weighing this, if you’re relatively healthy you may be able to forego it and just pay for whatever you need in cash. The AHCA rescinds the ACA’s mandate that everyone must have insurance and instead places a one-time 30% premium penalty on individuals who don’t maintain continuous coverage. This means for the year which you DO buy insurance after a certain period without it, you would pay insurance premium prices 30% higher than you would have otherwise (i.e., $1,300 instead of $1,000). It’s really not that much and when you consider what you could have been saving in those years where you didn’t buy insurance, it really doesn’t make sense.
Now all of this is hypothetical because the AHCA hasn’t (and may not) pass.
- Purchase insurance on the individual market
You can still go to any health insurance company’s website and buy insurance directly through the company’s brokers. They’re subject to a bunch of consumer protections again thanks to the ACA but this will likely cost you some cash moneyz since you have to go to the marketplaces to get the subsidies.
DISCLAIMER: This information is accurate to the best of my knowledge / there may be mistakes / differences of opinion. You should do your own research before acting on any information above.
I’m happy to answer questions / hear other thoughts.
Whitney Cummings is one of the best stand up comedians around. I put her up with their with contemporary greats such as Bill Burr, Joe Rogan, Joey Diaz, Dave Chappelle, Bryan Callen, Stanhope, and Chris Rock.
This isn’t a country in transition but some sort of postmodern dictatorship that uses the language and institutions of democratic capitalism for authoritarian ends.
Better read-up on Russia; the future of the liberal international order predicated on spreading democracy and individual rights is being jeopardized by dunces who are competent, true believers, and becoming more likely due to income inequality in age where it’s easier to know what you don’t have and easy to forget just how hard it was to get this far.
Spring 2017 - Independent Research - Directed Readings in U.S. Foreign Policy.
I am mowing through these books. They are all must reads for students of U.S. foreign policy and national security, imo. The best so far has been Maximalist.
I have 3 books left to read and then a massive comprehensive essay to compile, revise, and make perfect.
Spring 2017 - Proseminar in International Relations.
This is the book list for my class in my second semester of graduate school. So far I’ve read 4 of them; and about half way through one more, and almost done with one more.
Graduate student life: I became a political science major to avoid math. Whoops. Just kidding: I only avoid math because I’m innumerate and challenges are daunting; and failure is horrifying and disappointing. There is no such thing as “I’m not a math person.” What we mean when we say that is our emotions aren’t aligned up correctly when I sit down to do math; therefore, our flight mode kicks in and we run. Everyone can do math; it takes discipline, tenacity, and the structural necessities (only built up by reading; turns out you have to build the mind and there are correct ways of doing this) in place prior to attempting it.