The Congressional Republicans have failed in their rushed attempt to roll back Obamacare, a setback which – for now – allows millions of Americans to keep their health insurance. A crucial step in this development has been the analysis of the proposed law by the Congresional Budget Office clearly showing that the law boiled down to tax cuts for the highest incomes at the expense of health coverage for the rest.
It is striking to see how much that technical report changed the dynamics and led members of Congress to face their responsibilities. Before then, rare were the Republicans who dared stand up to their party objective to roll back Obamacare, even though the consequences were not hard to foresee.
In the age of fake news, it is more than ever crucial to have factual analyses of economic policies. While one is rarely fond of technocrats, their ground work is nonetheless a central element for the sound functioning of democracies. There is not good policy without a good analysis.
