As I review things today I found an interesting viewpoint from the Democrats and unfortunately it illustrates to me why they got beat down so badly in the 2014 midterm election. Here is a look at the piece that appeared here on Facebook: -- Uninsured rate has dropped 30% -- Health care inflation in 2013 hit a 50-year low -- Increased competition is driving prices down I will start with the uninsured rate dropping to 30%. First, I would say that yes, the number of uninsured has dropped. But has it dropped 30%? Well, I kind of doubt that. My reason for that conclusion is that this figure comes from a Gallup poll and the wording in the poll has this caveat: In addition to sampling error, question wording and practical difficulties in conducting surveys can introduce error or bias into the findings of public opinion polls. I would put the figure more into the upper teens to lower twenties but cant quantify that with facts and I have no confidence in the truth of polling. Since there is no statistical data yet for 2014 indicating how many insurance purchasers in the exchanges actually maintained their policies to renewal, the verdict is still out on the actual percentage change but it should be expected to drop. Health care inflation has slowed down. But according to Price-WaterhouseCoopers Health Research Institute that trend is turning around. That’s the conclusion of a study released Tuesday by consultant PricewaterhouseCoopers’ Health Research Institute, which says medical costs will rise 6.5% this year and 6.8% in 2015. Actual medical spending growth, however, could be 4.8% when benefit plan changes are taken into account, but that figure still will be up from 2014, the report says. (blogs.marketwatch/health-exchange/2014/06/24/health-care-inflation-starting-to-head-back-up-as-economy-turns-study/) Even the US Bureau of Labor Statistics is showing an uptick: data.bls.gov/timeseries/CUUR0000SAM?output_view=pct_12mths So medical inflation is climbing albeit at a reduced rate but destined to increase the climb at a higher rate which proves problematic. But the real whopper is increased competition is driving prices down. According to the Kaiser Family Foundation, The annual cost of the employee absorbed portion has increased 89% since 2003, equaling out to about 8% per annum. (kff.org/report-section/2013-summary-of-findings/) And to make matters worse, it is continuing to climb. So why is that number so important to the Democratic party? Well, inflation according to the US Inflation Rate calculator has the average annual rate of inflation since 2008 at 1.7%. The average wage growth since 2000 has been .42% according to the Economic Policy Institute (epi.org/publication/a-decade-of-flat-wages-the-key-barrier-to-shared-prosperity-and-a-rising-middle-class/), meaning that average inflation has eroded wages annually by about 1.28%. Add to that figure the annual erosion of 8% of the working Americans salary from increasing health insurance premiums and that number now becomes -9.28% annually. When that much money is removed from the typical American consumers wallet, it isnt rocket science who will get the blame, obviously it will be those who are perceived by the consumer as the ones who removed it...
Posted on: Mon, 08 Dec 2014 12:31:30 +0000