Brief Health Reform and Cost Shifting
John Holahan, Jack Hadley
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An editorial published by the Wall Street Journal on March 11, 2011, argues that the government's case for an individual mandate is faulty. The authors argue the "hidden tax" on people with health insurance is greatly overstated. Their support is a study by John Holahan and Jack Hadley, "Covering the Uninsured How Much Would It Cost?" Holahan and Hadley, disagree with the authors' interpretation of their research, however. They contend the individual mandate will reduce government payments for uncompensated care, which will translate into lower taxes paid by people with private insurance, even if their insurance premiums don't decrease.
Research Areas Health and health care Taxes and budgets
Tags Health insurance Health care delivery and payment Medicaid and the Children’s Health Insurance Program  Health care systems and managed care plans Individual taxes