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United States
美國
Replacing Obamacare: Cost-sharing is caring
廢除奧巴馬醫改：成本分攤令人關注
The paroles of replacing Obamacare's subsidies for the poor.
替換奧巴馬醫改法案對窮人補貼的口號。
As republican congressmen were berated by constituents this week for their desire to repeal the Affordable Care Act , wonks in Washington continued to work on a replacement.
當希望廢除平價醫保法案的共和黨議員在本周飽受選民責備時，華盛頓的政策專家們仍在致力于擬定一項替代方案。
Paul Ryan, the Speaker of the House, has promised a health-care bill soon after politicians return from their districts on February 27th.
眾議院議長保羅·瑞恩(Paul Ryan)承諾政客們2月27日從選區返回后不久就會推出新的醫療保健法案。
If they are to cool the protesters' zeal, Republicans must keep health insurance affordable for everyone who already has it.
要想平息眾怒，共和黨人必須使每一個已經擁有健康保險的人負擔得起。
That means deciding what to do about the subsidies Obamacare gives to 10m low- and middle-earners who buy coverage through government-run websites.
這意味著要妥善處理一千萬中低收入者從奧巴馬醫改計劃中獲得的補貼，他們之前從政府網站購買了保險。
Mr Ryan promises to replace the law's means-tested tax credits with a discount for everyone, varying not with income but with age.
瑞恩先生承諾用給予個人的優惠——其額度不隨收入而隨年齡有所變化，來替換基于收入的稅收抵免政策。
Would such a switch work?
這樣的轉變會有效果嗎？
Republicans have always hated the ACA's handouts.
共和黨人一貫討厭ACA的政府撥款。
Because they shrink if people earn more, they discourage toil.
因為如果人們收入越多，撥款就越少，他們不鼓勵辛勤的勞動。
The Congressional Budget Office has estimated that Obamacare reduces the total number of hours worked by 1.5-2%, which is equivalent to 2.5m full-time jobs by 2024.
國會預算辦公室估計，奧巴馬醫改計劃使總工作小時數減少1.5-2%，相當于250萬份做到2024年的全職工作。
Making tax credits universal would lessen that number.
推行稅收抵免會減小此數字。
And because the old pay more for health insurance than the young—a gap that will widen if the Republicans loosen restrictive pricing regulations—increasing subsidies with age makes some sense.
而且和年輕人相比，老年人會花更多錢買醫療保險，如果共和黨人放寬對價格規定的限制，差距還會擴大，因此根據年齡增加補貼就顯得合理。
Such a tax credit, though, would not be generous enough for all buyers.
然而，這樣的稅收抵免對所有投保人來說都不夠慷概。
The average Obamacare subsidy adds up to about $3,600 per person.
奧巴馬醫療計劃的人均補助是3600美元。
Many receive much more.
許多人可以拿到更多。
Two non-smoking 55-year-olds together earning $56,500, the median household income, get $4,800 each just to help pay for premiums, according to the Kaiser Family Foundation, a think-tank.
根據凱瑟家庭基金會——一個智囊機構所說，兩個55歲的非吸煙者，其總工資按中等家庭收入56500美元來算，每人可以獲得4800美元以支付保險費。
According to The Economist's calculations, if Mr Ryan spread the cash around all 22m Americans who buy health insurance directly, rather than through their employer, it would average only about $2,000 each.
根據經濟學人的計算，如果瑞恩先生不通過雇主，而是直接給2200萬購買過醫療保險的人發放現金的話，人均只能得到2000美元。
That is close to what Tom Price, the new health secretary, proposed in 2015 for 35-to 49-year-olds (older folk would have got $3,000).
這接近于湯姆·普萊斯(Tom Price)——新的衛生部長在2015年提出的為35到49歲人群提供的補貼水平(年紀更大的人本來可以得到3000美元)。
Republicans say it is enough, because costs will fall once insurance is deregulated.
共和黨人說這就足夠了，因為一旦保險放松管制，成本便會下降。
譯文來源考研英語時事閱讀
