Why should the principles be any different for health insurance premiums?
The $8,400 saved by Mr. CEO far exceeds anything that Bush or Kerry thinks the government should spend on a family policy for the uninsured. The principal feature of Bush’s initiative is a maximum annual insurance stipend that he expects will provide uninsured Americans with enough money to cover 90 percent of the cost of a basic policy. If a household consists of a husband, wife and two dependent children, that maximum stipend is $3,000. To guard against government excesses, Bush’s plan reduces the subsidy if the family’s income exceeds a modest $25,000, and he eliminates the subsidy altogether if their income exceeds $60,000. Smaller sums would be available for smaller households. For example, the maximum annual stipend for a single person without dependents is a mere $1,000, and the figure declines if her income exceeds a piddling $15,000. When it comes to helping lower- and moderate-income households with their health insurance costs, Bush won’t tolerate more than a minimal federal
