Picture from Mar 20,2010 Rally at the US Capital
As is typical of our political elite who style themselves as heroes to the cause of the underprivileged we see in the current health care legislation the cumulation of their arrogance. The President wants to debate in terms of generalities and totally disregard for specifics of a bill that will without a doubt increase the burden of government debt and control over the health care of each and every citizen especially those citizens who are already "doing the right thing". If one is responsible and has health care and contributes to HSAs and works hard to stay employed and doesn't just look to quit their job in a recession and drop off the face of the earth to "become a writer, or artist" as Speaker Pelosi suggested this bill would allow Americans to do then those Americans and businesses will face a new burden in already trying economic times.
The current bill will add an increased burden on individuals and empower the IRS to audit the health care situation of every citizen and if a citizen does not need or desire to buy health insurance then that citizen will find themselves treated like a tax cheat. Their refund will be seized, their wages can be attached, and if seen fit their property confiscated as if they were some kind of criminal. It does not matter if the person is a one who chooses to pay for his or her health care directly with no insurance. It doesn't matter if the person is young and doesn't need comprehensive care. There will be no exceptions and the only jobs that will be created will be in the hiring of more than a thousand new IRS agents to handle the big brotherish job of monitoring everyone's compliance with this health care bill.
Small businesses with as little as 50 employees will face draconian new mandates under this bill as much as $2000 per employee if they don't offer health insurance to their employees. This will hardly encourage small businesses to grow to include more than 50 employees and it will cause others who may have say 60 employees now to consider cutting their workforce. It is exactly the wrong approach to be taking when small businesses and employers are having such a tough economic time already just staying in business.
There is also the issue of the so called "Cadillac Tax". This 40% excise tax on employers who offer the best health care plans for their employees would levy a tax of 40% on any individual coverage costs above than $10,200 or family coverage costing more than $27,500. This again seems to be sending the wrong message. This will discourage employers to provide the best health care options for their employees and penalize them when they do. It will mean they will simply no longer offer the more costly plans for those employees who can afford them or they will pass on even more health care costs to those employees. So again those who are doing the right thing will find themselves treated as if they are criminals because they are doing the right thing without the government forcing them too.
These are just a few of the horrible ideas that are in this current plan. It is a plan that will without a doubt cost America in jobs lost and businesses closed. It will cause Health Care options to be reduced down to a generic common denominator and will penalize anyone who does not wish or need government mandated insurance. It will heap sacrifice those who are doing the "right thing" for the sake of those who are chronically dependent on government. This is entirely unnecessary.
The Obama Administration could have opened up competition across state lines. It could have allowed not only individuals to contribute more to tax free HSAs(Health Savings Accounts) which have shown to reduce costs as individuals shop around with their own money but also setup an easy system for anyone to contribute tax free to others who may have health care needs. They could have allowed individuals who choose to pay for their own health care increased tax breaks. They could have setup an inexpensive system to help Americans contribute directly to health care charity networks which run free clinics and such. They could have given tax breaks to Doctors who offer their own private service plans and helped protect doctors through tort reform and patients through malpractice transparency. They could have setup more grants for medical students and nursing students and fast track method for importing more doctors. I know this is not the big government way but it has been shown that when the charity of Americans is unleashed any need can be satisfied and without the iron fist of a tyrannical bureaucrat insisting they do it their way with or without the consent of the citizen.
Instead they give us a bill that will cost America dearly. It will cause quality of care to be reduced for those who already have good or excellent care. It will eventually cause existing charity options to wither and it will discourage individuals from going into the medical profession. We will see increased job losses as small businesses close or cut employees. We will see corporations cut health care options and jobs. We will see stocks tumble once again. We will see premiums continue to rise and the cost of this new big government program grow exponentially and as the costs grow out of control the same individuals who gave us this plan will want to double down. They will want us to sacrifice not to improve health care but to keep this disjointed 2,500 page monstrosity alive and those who then are dependent on it happy.
No one believes them when they tell us this will cut the deficit because that has never happened before. If a business was ever as broke as our federal government we would think them insane if they opened a free employee spa as their last act before closing. We have seen what happened when the government "helped" everyone buy houses even if they couldn't afford it. They have did the same with education which costs continue to skyrocket. No where is there any evidence that the government ever reduced the cost for those who fit the bill, the tax payer.
Those in Congress have run up our national credit card to the point of no return and now they seek to go one better. They are not just stealing from each of us now but they are spending away the future of our children and our nation's strength. This isn't just another bill. It isn't just politics. It is simply irresponsible. It is time to take their power away.