Obamacare and Romneycare Share a Lot in Common

The Wonk Room (here) provides this handy-dandy table comparing major provisions of the federal Affordable Care Act and the Massachusetts Health Law, which shows the challenge Mitt Romney faces in trying to distinguish "Romneycare" from "Obamacare":

Major Provisions	Affordable Care Act	Massachusetts Health Law
Individual Mandate	Yes	Yes
Employer Responsibility	Yes — but not required to provide coverage	Yes — required to provide coverage
Affordability Credits	Yes	Yes
Standard Benefit Package	Yes — w/o abortion services	Yes — w/ abortion services
Establishes Exchanges	Yes	Yes
Prohibits Insurance Company From Canceling Coverage	Yes	Yes
Bans Denying Medical Coverage For Pre-existing Conditions	Yes	Yes
Medicaid Expansion	Yes	Yes
Medicare Cuts	Yes	No Authority

A Visual Demonstration of Improvements in Per Capita Income and Public Health Over 200 Years

Public Health expert Hans Rosling, on the BBC program "Joy of Stats," provides a stunning visual depiction of how public health has improved along with per capita income (in virtually all countries) over the past 200 years.



Hat tip: Bob Kleinops and LiveScience.com