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The politics of health

From Vox, the CBO's nonpartisan report on the Republican ACA replacement plan, explained in 6 charts. Here are 4 big things missing from the CBO report on Republicans' health-care bill. As health care debate intensifies, GOP takes aim at empiricism. Unless you've lived without health insurance, you have no idea how scary it is. Will "repeal and replace" implode? Republicans just proposed a $12,900 annual premium increase on low-income 64-year-olds — a shambolic performance. The CBO's other bombshell: The Affordable Care Act isn't imploding. David Leonhardt on the original lie about Obamacare. Is Trump sabotaging Obamacare? The record is mixed, but he sure keeps hinting at it.

The health-care mess could screw up everything Republicans are trying to do this year. Paul Krugman on populism and the politics of health. Jared Bernstein can think of no other explanation for this plan than this: Republicans looked out at the country and concluded that the wealthy had too little after-tax income and the poor had too much health care. The GOP health plan is an act of class warfare by the rich against the poor. The incredible cruelty of Trumpcare: Republicans are willing to cause a humanitarian crisis just to give permanent tax cuts to millionaires.