- Health officials and governors in more than half the country are now restricted from issuing mask mandates and school closures.
- The 42% of adults who are obese costs the US health system 173 billion dollars a year, including cardiovascular disease, cancers, depression, breathing issues, and skeletal issues. Despite this, 98 percent of Americans do not receive treatment for their obesity.
- Greg Mankiw: “The Biden administration faces a trilemma: They would like to (1) increase spending on programs they consider important, (2) not raise taxes on those making less than $400,000 a year, and (3) put fiscal policy on a sustainable path. But the stark reality is that they can have only 2 out of the 3.”
- A defense of Vinyl chloride. (despite the dead fish)
- IRS: 42K federal workers are cheating on their taxes.
Category: Health Reform
Bidenomics
Casey Mulligan in the Wall Street Journal:
I estimate that Mr. Biden’s insurance, regulatory and tax policies as implemented will eventually combine to reduce the nation’s labor income by 5% to 6.5%, with an additional reduction in the long term due to education policies in blue states. In two years under the Biden administration, the labor market is already falling short. Real employee compensation per adult … is 3.3% below the pre-pandemic trend.
I estimate that degrowth policies since 2020 will cumulatively reduce Medicare and Social Security tax revenue by at least $400 billion—and perhaps as much as $900 billion. The tax base will shrink even more if Mr. Biden succeeds in levying higher wealth and business taxes.
I estimate that … remote-learning policies reduced prospective Medicare and Social Security tax revenue by $118 billion in present value.
How Bobby Jindal and Newt Gingrich Would Save Medicare
- Make payments site neutral – same fee, regardless of where the service is performed (hospital, out-patient clinic, doctor’s office, etc.)
- End Medicare’s bad-debt compensation program that reimburses hospitals for 65% of uncollected patient out-of-pocket costs.
- Get serious about tackling fraud.
- Recognize preventive medicine as a money saver rather than a money spender.
How Joe Biden Wants to Save Medcare
| Trump (actual) | Biden Proposed | |
| Personal income tax top rate | 37% | 44.6% |
| Capital gains tax top rate (including NIIT) | 23.8% | 44.6% |
| Corporate tax | 21% | 28% |
| Tax on Unrealized Capital Gains | 0% | 25% |
| Medicare tax/NIIT | 3.8% | 5% |
| Stock Buyback tax | 0% | 4% |
Source: Committee to Unleash Prosperity