Study: Obamacare's insurance tax to impose hundreds of dollars of costs on individuals and families

The Washington Examiner ^ | February 20, 2014 | Philip Klein

[2ndDivisionVet]

A multibillion-dollar tax that President Obama's health care law imposes on the insurance industry will be passed onto consumers, according to a new study by American Action Forum, costing individuals and families hundreds of dollars annually starting this year.

As one way of financing the $2 trillion cost of expanding insurance coverage, Obamacare imposes a tax on the health insurance industry, which is assessed to each insurer based on their share of annual premiums collected by the industry.

But according to the study by Robert Book of the center-right policy group American Action Forum, "insurers will have to pass most of this tax along to policyholders in the form of higher premiums, or possibly higher average out-of-pocket costs or reduced benefits."

The report estimates that in 2014, individuals with employer sponsored insurance would have to pay $77 extra as a result of the tax and those with family coverage through their employers would have to pay an extra $266....

[Repeal The 17th]

“... a tax imposed on industry will be passed on to consumers ...”
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Who’d a thunk it?

[Pollster1]

That is unexpected. Who would have guessed that a tax on business would be passed on to the customers? We all know that every other business tax in history has been passed on to customers, but what were the odds that it would happen again?

[fatnotlazy]

This just gets better and better. Wonder if the lamestream media will give this news top billing.

Nah. They're too busy carrying on over Chris Christie.

[grobdriver]

Who’d a thunk it?

Certainly not the morons in Washington, Barry and his buddies.

[cuban leaf]

Thanks to Obamacare, we save about $850 a month.

‘Course, we have no health insurance. At all.

Opting out of health insurance in a world of Obamacare is one of the easiest and most effective ways to go Galt that there is.

[Graewoulf]

“Shocking!”

[Molly T.]

The simplest way would have been for EVERYONE to have said NO, thanks any way. Don't think the gov. should be running our health care. Don't think they should be involved AT ALL.

If necessary, for what this has cost in confusion & money, the gov. could have set up a fund to cover the people who were not able to get coverage anywhere else....pre-existing health problems, ect.