It’s hard to believe that our government would propose a bill mandating anything. It’s even harder to believe that we’re not storming the White House with pitch forks. No one wants to be the first, but I’ll join if you start it ….
H.R. 3962, as amended could land people in jail. The typical single person will pay somewhere between 2.5% and 8% of your annual salary in a tax if you choose not to buy insurance. The typical family will pay around 12% in tax if you don’t have insurance. These numbers may be off and if so please correct me.
The typical family also happens to spend between 105% and 110% of their salary each year. Credit cards are generally the problem and in combination with too much house, most of us are already in up to our necks. As I generally tell youngsters, we spend our 20’s and 30’s racking up debt and spend the rest of lives trying to pay it off. Debt in this country is a real problem and the economy burden is finally showing people the light.
So let’s put this in context. How many people will go to jail because they can’t afford insurance or the fines?
I own a small business. My wife and I spend $650 per month on our health policy. Fine if the money is there every month. However, the slowdown in the economy hit us hard and caught up with us a few months ago. On top of that our heat and air unit died. We cashed in some savings and borrowed the rest ($5,500). From there it got worse. With money tight, we had to trim expenses. We discussed that the first thing to go would be the $650 health policy. But fortunately we skimmed by and didn’t have to drop it (by God’s Grace). We did trim up with some other smaller things and have managed build our savings back up a little.
Point is, the average family is hurting. We were lucky but a lot of folks are not. Whether it’s a family that has suddenly hit hard times or big spender that has suddenly seen the light, will our government seriously put Americans in jail if they can’t afford it? I know a family that makes 150k between them, but are in dire straights because they bought too much house and can’t sell it. They have two children and make too much to get a pass. Which one of them will go to jail?
This whole healthcare mandate would be laughable if it were not dangerous. And for our government to propose it should make everyone livid (even Libs). Honest people who have made bad spending decisions are in danger and I want Pelosi and Obama to tell them why they should go to jail. This is an outrage.
Thanks for letting me vent.
Worse than outrageous: Try "stupid"
merryj1 Saturday, November 14th at 9:32AM EST (link)In fact, try “stupidity mandated under cloak of authority.”
Using your example of $650 monthly for health insurance, that’s pushing 8 Grand per year for starters for two adults. Assuming reasonably sound health — at least sound enough to carry a full work-load — actual health care costs would norrmally be what? One or two visits each to the family doctor, maybe a prescription or two for an antibiotic or other medicine? Excluding unnecessary measures taken only because “it’s covered and therefore doesn’t cost anything,” the insurance carrier would be billed roughly $800 - $900, they’d pay $640 - $720, you’d be billed the remaining $160 - $180, and the carrier would pocket over $7 Grand for their administrative overhead.
Catastrophic-only insurance makes some sense, as would health savings accounts; but for most reasonably-healthy people, especially younger people, self-pay for normal medical expenses is more sensible and way less expensive.
Stupid is as stupid does.
VizBiz Saturday, November 14th at 11:29AM EST (link)Thanks for the comment. I would also note that my insurance is relatively low (about $250 per month). My wife takes the brunt of the cost because she is female. In our state, all women are mandated to pay for pregnancies. My wife had a tubal ligation in her 20’s and of course cannot have anymore childeren.
This type of mandate could be erased if we could buy insurance across state lines. Needless to say, if a single payer system is established, it will require the same types of mandates that you cannot escape. Health Insurance premiums will stay artificially high.
Runs with scissors, walks with Wacom.