More Sucky Ideas for Health Care

Just when I thought they had exhausted the playbook of sucky ideas for health care legislation, the Democrats reach for an oldie but goodie, more regulation. From the LA Times article:

The change sprang from a compromise made to placate conservative Democrats wary of a new government program. But shorn of a "public option," the Senate healthcare bill has reverted to a long-established practice of leveraging government power to police the private sector, rather than compete with it. Despite the resistance among Republicans and conservatives to more government regulation, even the insurance industry has agreed to broad new oversight of their business in exchange for the prospect of gaining millions of new customers.

I hate how Democrats think that Tea Party protesters are in the hands of big business, it's a slander. I always hate these kinds of short-sighted sell out by the business community, they are only going to get screwed in the end. Better for them to pull out all the stops to prevent passage, especially when that passage looks in doubt now.

Let's recap Obama's goals for health care legislation from his own web site:

• Reduce the cost of health care.
• Increase the number of insured.
• Ensure those with pre-existing conditions are covered.
• Protect Medicare.
• Create a more competition through and insurance exchange and "public option."
• Do not increase the deficit.

How does strangling the industry with more regulation accomplish any such goal? In fact it harms the goals of cost reduction, increasing the number of insured and protecting medicare.

Meanwhile the LA Times article goes on to criticize the idea of more regulation, because it will not kill private insurance fast enough. OK, they don't actually say that, but it's pretty clear that's the author's vision.