The Democrats' Phantom Fix on Health Care

Democrats say they can reduce health-care costs through individual mandates. Don't buy it

Alex Wong / Getty

Under Max Baucus' plan, Americans would have to buy coverage or pay a fine.

Democrats have a tiger by the tail. It is dawning on them that the people screaming at those town-hall meetings over the summer were not just feigning anger or sublimating their personal neuroses. Cherish is not too strong a word for how Americans feel about what they get out of their health-care plans, however much they grouse about access and cost. According to the Kaiser Family Foundation, 92% of Americans who do have health insurance are very or somewhat satisfied with their choice of doctors and hospitals; 95% are very or somewhat satisfied with the quality of their care more generally....

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