An Actual Decent Bipartisan Approach to Health Care Reform Emerges

This is one of the best plans I've seen in a while. It has it's shortcomings but I don't think I've come across anything better, short of a national single payer system, which I fully support.

In short, here's what I'm talking about.

Sens. Ron Wyden (D-Ore.) and Scott Brown (R-Mass.) introduced the “Empowering States to Innovate Act.” The legislation would allow states to develop their own health-care reform proposals that would preempt the federal government’s effort. If a state can think of a plan that covers as many people, with as comprehensive insurance, at as low a cost, without adding to the deficit, the state can get the money the federal government would’ve given it for health-care reform but be freed from the individual mandate, the exchanges, the insurance requirements, the subsidy scheme and pretty much everything else in the bill.

I think this is a great idea. I really do. It allows states to exert primary control of their health care system. If they can do a better job than the federal government-- or another state-- and do it cheaper, then the state gets to keep the money the federal government would be supplying it in the first place.  If not, the state has the option of adopting an approach that has worked in other states all of which would be backed up by the federal government.

I'll have more on this later, but on the surface I gotta admit I'm encouraged by this approach.  States get more say and get to compete with each other to see who can build the cheapest and best health care system.

*Update:

Giving states more power in the realm of health care is not just a "conservative" issue.  Though I'd argue all day what "conservative" actually means.  Nevertheless, the hippy, tree hugging, liberals at Fire Dog Lake are coming out in favor of this newest bipartisan proposal.

Via Jon Walker at FDL:

People on the right should support it because it at least gives states the option of creating a system without an individual mandate, and it would technically not be “Washington-directed health care” or “Obamacare.”

Progressives should strongly support the change because, frankly, the private insurance exchange model created by the new health care law is a horribly designed, wasteful, pro-corporatist system. It is unlikely to be sustainable long term. The earlier that more liberal states can adopt more progressive models, the better. Ideally, when the more successful progressive reforms are demonstrated to be successful in a few liberal states, it will result in those progressive changes being adopted nationally.

Now I realize that when evil liberals come out in favor of something it is a vote killer for the America-loving Republicans. So me drawing attention to the fact that this might be something both sides could agree on indeed presents the possibility for Republicans to yell and scream that they are not being listened to while holding circle jerks to combat what they fear is a socialist takeover. I'll take my chances on this but I'm fully aware the slightest mention of support from the left could kill this for the GOP.