Sunday, May 31, 2009

Points of View - May 31

Derivatives and the Wisdom of Crowds - By L. Gordon Crovitz - The Wall Street Journal - "In the early days of the credit crisis, some in Congress wanted to ban financial derivatives. Others wanted a Financial Product Safety Commission, modeled on the Consumer Product Safety Commission, with a bureaucracy to approve or recall financial instruments. The good news is that last week's administration proposals for how financial markets should operate are focused on better disclosure instead of micromanagement."

On Health Care, Republicans Move Beyond 'Just Say No' - USA Today - "The idea is to introduce market forces into health care to hold down costs that are soaring unsustainably. Here's how it would work: The government would essentially pay for the first $5,700 in coverage for a family through the credit, and the family would pay the rest out of pocket. With the average family plan costing $12,700 now, that is a major cost. An employer could contribute, but with workers having to pay tax on the benefit, the employer might as well convert it to pay."

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