Posted on 06/22/2009 5:16:29 PM PDT by 2nd amendment mama
House Democrats on Friday finally unveiled their long-awaited 852-page health care “reform” legislation (pdf) that engineers a government takeover of medicine. The bill is a staggeringly expensive bureaucratic nightmare that Democrats will try to defend in a series of hearings beginning this week.
As details of this leviathan bill begin to emerge, what is becoming increasingly clear is this plan, if passed, will cost American jobs. Democrats would use the cost of a business’ annual payroll to define whether or not a small business is subject to a new eight percent federal tax. Only those with less than 10 employees on average would be spared the onerous new tax. Subjecting these small businesses who employ 47.3 million people and provide $1.7 trillion in wages annually to the Democrats’ new tax will place these jobs and wages at risk.
Additional employer mandates that will require some small businesses to offer employee coverage would cost another 4.7 million jobs according to a model from the President’s own economic advisors.
The House Democrats’ plan also places mandates on every individual American citizen to buy health insurance or pay a hefty penalty to Washington equal to almost two percent of their annual income. Of course, if you can’t afford to pay for the coverage, you would be forced into the government-run system that will make health care more expensive and ration care based on age, cost and survivability rates. The government system also puts bureaucrats in charge of medical decisions, like putting the DMV in charge of your medical decisions.
Rep. Henry Waxman (D-Calif.), chairman of the House Energy and Commerce Committee, has admitted that their health care plan would be financed by raising taxes. There have been reports of a whole slew of new taxes on individuals being considered, from a national sales tax to additional taxes on cigarettes, new taxes on sodas, and raising taxes on everyone making more than $200,000 a year.
According to a Lewin Group study published earlier this year, a similar Democrat plan would force more than 100 million Americans out of their current health coverage and into the government system. The Congressional Budget Office issued a report last week on the similar plan authored by Senate Democrats that would force at least 23 million people out of their private health care coverage. According to news reports, even the White House has admitted that statements made by the President promising you can keep your current health care coverage if you like it shouldn’t be taken literally.
Rep. John Boehner (R-Ohio), the House Republican leader, talked Friday about the Democrat plan.
“This plan is nothing less than a government takeover of health care, and families and small businesses who are already footing the bill for Washington’s reckless spending binge will not support it,” Boehner said. “Raising taxes, rationing care, and empowering government bureaucrats -- not patients and doctors -- to make key medical decisions is not ‘reform.’ This plan will make health care more expensive, reduce the quality of care for millions of families and small businesses, cost American jobs, and force untold millions of Americans off their current plans and into a government-run nightmare operated by federal bureaucrats.”
House Ways and Means Committee ranking Republican Dave Camp of Michigan expressed concerns about the cost of this undertaking.
“The Democrats are refusing to reveal the price tag of this bill or how they will pay for it, but it is obvious it will cost well over a trillion dollars,” Camp said. “We will certainly need to examine the details, but I fear this plan will force tens of millions of Americans to lose their current health care coverage and put the federal government in charge of determining what doctors and treatments are available to patients. Those dangers will be magnified by the hundreds of billions of dollars in hidden tax increases that could cause millions more Americans to lose their jobs.”
“Americans need a real bipartisan solution on health care -- this bill isn’t,” Camp added. “The sooner Democrats invite us to sit down together, not just as Republicans and Democrats, but as Americans, the sooner we can craft a commonsense solution that will make health care more affordable, accessible and available for all Americans.”
Gohmert Introduces Health Savings Accounts Health Care Plan
Rep. Louie Gohmert (R-Texas), the man who brought you the Tax Holiday stimulus plan, has a fresh, innovative health care plan that centers on health savings accounts that give individuals control over health care spending.
(Gohmert’s “tax holiday” alternative to Obama’s stimulus plan would have simply excused Americans from paying taxes for most of the year. It would have worked -- at far greater speed and lower cost -- than Obama’s failed stimulus package.)
Every American citizen would maintain a personal, family, household or employer-provided Health Savings Account (HSA), all contributions from pre-tax dollars. Rather than filtering money through “premiums, profits and taxes first,” patients would spend the money directly from their own HSA. There is no limit on how much pre-tax money could be put into this health savings account. This would work in conjunction with a catastrophic insurance policy that is adjustable as the savings account grows over years and even generations. These HSAs would roll over each year and would also be an asset that would be passed on to your family or designee.
Any amount over $3,000 could also be invested in a manner that would “include stable, inflation-protected federal treasury bonds so that your investment can have added growth. A separate type of federal Treasury bond may be created in other legislation specifically for such investment. That way, as long as there is a United States, your healthcare savings will be there for you when you need it.”
Each person would be issued a debit card to access the funding. These cards would be coded and could only be used for health care purchases. No hassles or paperwork.
“We are rolling out a new health care plan because the plans we’ve seen so far have involved too much government and too much insurance company involvement, which has been a big part of our problem,” Gohmert said at the announcement. “If you liked my Tax Holiday Plan, you’re going to love this one. This plan will give every American the treatment that they need, when they need it, with the doctor of their choosing and at a price that is affordable.”
You can read the plan online here.
Hopefully, the Dem plan will also cover union heathcare plans. This would be a kick in the tookus for their loyal friend ... labor.
Democrats would use the cost of a business' annual payroll to define whether or not a small business is subject to a new eight percent federal tax. Only those with less than 10 employees on average would be spared the onerous new tax. Subjecting these small businesses who employ 47.3 million people and provide $1.7 trillion in wages annually to the Democrats' new tax will place these jobs and wages at risk.If liberals actually worked for a living...
Ahem, calling all you suckers who believed Zero’s lie only people making over $250K would pay higher taxes in the new regime! Like P.T. Barnum said, there’s one of you born every minute!
Not acceptable, the only plan acceptable is every person pays for their own health care and government pays for no ones!
BWAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA! LOLOLOLOLOLOL!!!! Government dudes... I quit making an income just for this very reason. "Freedom's just another word for 'nothin left to lose'"
So the government dudes can bite me. I ain't got NOTHIN! LOL
/johnny
Sooooo, will either plan give us Boomers our US Senate equivalent health care? Time for the “Grey Wave” to wash these jokers away.
Well most of us don't have the luxury to do that. I have to eat. I suppose you retired and saved enough to live on? If so, my congratulations and hope all goes well.
You want to eat, wild pigs are ruining farms in Texas. Lots of folks will let you hunt for free, and there is no season on them.
But I can guarantee you that I won't swap Washington my birthright for a mess of pottage.
/johnny
These idiots haven’t even taken into consideration the fact that they are going to put health insurance companies out of business. That means there will be tens of thousands more unemployed, and a huge loss of not only income tax but taxes from the businesses. Have they lost their everloving idiotic minds?
Well, I guess Stupid is as Stupid does.
Talk about re-arranging deck chairs on the Titanic.....
* a new eight percent federal tax on all businesses (with >10 employees)
* Additional employer mandates that will require businesses to offer employee coverage (would cost another 4.7 million jobs
* Mandates every American citizen to buy health insurance or pay a hefty penalty equal to almost two percent of their annual income.
* Implement a whole slew of new taxes on (via a national sales tax to additional taxes on cigarettes, new taxes on sodas, and raising taxes on everyone making more than $200,000 a year. )
* create hundreds of billions of dollars in hidden tax increases that could cause millions more Americans to lose their jobs
* Force more than 100 million Americans out of their current health coverage and into the government system. * The Democrats are refusing to reveal the price tag of this bill or how they will pay for it, but it is obvious it will cost well over a trillion dollars
Well over 4.7 million jobs would be lost if this legislation is passed. But, hey, it's no big deal because Zero will create lots of "green" and "shovel ready" jobs for us!!!/sarc
this is the Big One, change you can be controlled by
Yep, turning high tech jobs to shovel jobs will bring on the prosperity. Can’t wait! WHooooo wheee.
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