Democrats Propose ‘Medicare-X’ Health Insurance Plan

Tapping into Medicare's network of doctors and hospitals could make coverage affordable for Americans now priced out of the market, Sen. Tim Kaine believes.

The Virginia Democrat and Sen. Michael Bennet, D-Colo., are trying again with their "Medicare-X" idea of offering a government-run health insurance option.

Because the federal Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services don't need to earn a profit, market coverage or pay the high salaries private insurers give executives, Kaine said Medicare-X policies would likely cost 10 to 15 percent less than those currently on offer through the Obamacare exchanges.

But the idea is that Medicare-X would offer the same benefits as Obamacare policies -- including pediatric and obstetrics care not currently covered by Medicare. As with Medicare, and the Obamacare policies, people with pre-existing conditions could not be denied coverage.

The bill also echoes an initiative offered by Rep. Robert C. "Bobby" Scott, D-Newport News, and other senior House Democrats -- offering people with incomes exceeding 400 percent of the federal poverty line subsidies for their coverage.

In addition, Kaine and Bennet propose capping premiums for Medicare-X coverage, depending on income. For people at 600 percent of the poverty line or above, that cap would be 13 percent of household income.

"That should ease a lot of anxiety" that comes from the current unpredictability of private insurers' premium increases, Kaine said.

"If you want options and lower costs, we've got the bill for you," Kaine said in a conference call with reporters Tuesday.

The premiums for Medicare-X policies would be designed to cover costs, so the program would not affect the finances of current Medicare.

In fact, Kaine said there should be savings to the government if Americans buy a public option coverage. The lower premiums would require smaller subsidies than do current Obamacare policies.

Bennet said the idea is to take a practical step toward covering uninsured Americans, adding that he did not see Medicare-X as either a first step to other Democrats' "Medicare for all" plans -- supported by several 2020 presidential candidates -- or as a rejection of those ideas.

He and Kaine propose introducing Medicare-X by 2021 in areas where there is currently only one private insurer offering Obamacare coverage, expanding it to the rest of the country by 2024 and offering it as an option for small businesses seeking coverage for employees by 2025.

An earlier version gained little traction in 2017, and while the idea of a "public option" was floated for the Affordable Care Act, it never made it to the final version that became law in 2010.

Dave Ress, 757-247-4535, [email protected]

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