When asked (Christian Science Monitor) on Wednesday why she pushed so hard to pass a health care bill before Christmas, Pelosi said “Its very hard to merchandise healthcare until we have a bill.” What? We can’t tell people why it is so good for them until the bill is passed? That’s encouraging.
From 2020 to 2029, "it will reduce the deficit of the United States by $1.3 trillion," he added. "At the end of the day, 94 percent of the people in the United States will have health insurance the highest percentage in our history."
How does that work, you ask (LA Times)?
All insurance is based on the idea that most of the time, most people are not filing claims. As it applies to healthcare, supporters say, most people are pretty healthy most of the time, but eventually almost everyone incurs major medical expenses. If only sick people bought insurance, the system would collapse because plans would be forced to pay out more than they took in. And since nearly everyone who develops a serious medical problem gets treated (with or without insurance), the cost of treating the uninsured is passed on to other people. In effect, those with insurance are helping pay the costs of those without it.
So basically this is either about making money for the insurance companies (MoveOn.org is complaining about this (AP)) or it is an attempt to force everyone into the same molds (ie. not saving money themselves). There are some exceptions (AP) to the latter option (emphasis mine):
Longshoremen. They were added to the list of workers in high-risk professions who are **shielded from the full impact of a proposed new tax on high-value insurance plans**. (Electrical linemen were already included, along with policemen, firefighters, emergency first responders and workers in construction, mining, forestry, fishing and certain agriculture jobs.)
We’re penalizing many of the people outside of this list who currently really want insurance. That’s smart. I’m on the opposite side of the spectrum. I don’t want insurance at all. I used to sell insurance plans for electronics and furniture. I know the theory behind insurance plans and I’ll make do for myself. Then again, I’m the oddball American that doesn’t want to max out credit cards (“the borrower is servant to the lender”). One of the “unalienable rights” declared in the United States’ Declaration of Independence is the right to pursue happiness. Four tight walls that prevent any kind of failure does not allow any pursuing. Already “ignorance of the law is no excuse.” We are working on a bill that has half as many words as my Bible (363,000+ vs. 774,000+), which people have been arguing about the meaning of for 1,900 years (longer for most of it). I’m supposed to know the law when this thing is created and pushed through in less than a year? That sure leaves lots of time to pursue happiness. It even leaves time to earn a living. Anybody who wants to do anything is not allowed to be ignorant. There is an increased Medicare penalty for individuals making more than $200,000/yr (AP):
A proposed 0.5 percent increase in the Medicare payroll tax was bumped up to 0.9 percent in the latest version, putting the tax at 2.35 percent on income over $200,000 a year for individuals, $250,000 for couples.
In order to get around this, the individual or couple would have to create a corporation of some kind. Or do most people not realize that many small businesses operate as a sole-proprietorship or joint venture? That means that even though there are a few write-offs, most of the operating income for the business goes through their “income” block on the 1040. $200,000 is not as much as you might think. Donations to charities don’t decrease this amount for the self-employed (tithing either, for that matter). This means a lot more to study and take their minds away from actually running the business. How is this life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness?
McClatchy Newspapers reported yesterday:
The health-care legislation scheduled for a Senate vote early Thursday is a 2,000-page plus grab-bag of ideas and strategies, and a lot of senators are as confused about its potential impact as the general public is.
"It has to be complicated," said Timothy Jost, a law professor at Washington & Lee University in Lexington, Va., because it overhauls a complex system that involves one-sixth of the American economy.
However, Jost added, "It's probably more complicated than it has to be."
Do we really trust these senators to know how one sixth of our economy should be run? I mean, sure we pay them for it but when was the last time you handed a senator your paycheck willingly and told them to do whatever they want with it? Realize that on average, we’ve just given them control over two more months worth of wages for the average United States citizen. It sure helps young people like me who are trying to run our own businesses. In addition to the expenses and time requirements of college or other forms of learning:
However, young, healthy people buying such [average] coverage could see rates higher than they might be able to get today, because they'd get no break for their health status and less of a discount for their age, Blumberg said.
[But it was passed anyway](http://www.marketwatch.com/story/obama-praises-historic-senate-health-care-vote-2009-12-24):
NEW YORK (MarketWatch) – President Barack Obama on Thursday praised the U.S. Senate’s historic vote on health-care reform. The passage of the bill by a Christmas Eve vote of 60-39 marks a major step toward the government’s largest health-care coverage expansion since Medicaid in 1965. Obama said he looks forward to meeting with House and Senate leaders to “finish the job” of health-care reform. The president said the U.S. is now ‘incredibly close’ to reform that will provide health-care coverage for 30 million more Americans. The bill will save businsses money over time, Obama said.
Save money my foot. It's another tax. And Pelosi can't even tell you why it is good.
Merry Christmas from the US Government.