The scale of coverage in this second bail-out was staggering.

ECONOMIST: New banking measures

Vodafone takes the opposite view: its international coverage gives it economies of scale in research and development and greater clout with equipment vendors.

ECONOMIST: Vodafone versus Vivendi

The giants are able to use their scale to provide broader coverage and land access, sometimes exclusive, to the hottest devices, such as the iPhone and choice Android phones from device makers like HTC Corp.

WSJ: How the iPhone Zapped Carriers

Or do you just scale back benefits or drop coverage altogether?

WHITEHOUSE: President Obama Explains Why Health Insurance Reform is Crucial for Small Business | The White House

One proposal calls for a sliding-scale tax credit for Americans who need help affording coverage.

FORBES: '08 Tracker: November

It is entirely possible that employers, because of economies of scale, would be able to offer employees much better coverage at lower prices than employees could get on their own, in which case employers might continue providing coverage as a way to lure good employees.

FORBES: How Tax Reform Facilitates Health Care Reform

We would set a sliding income scale, up to 400% of poverty, to help people to purchase coverage.

FORBES: Karen Ignagni

At the bottom of the financial scale, as more firms stop offering insurance, more people are left without coverage.

ECONOMIST: California leads, but the rest of America is not far behind