58. Health Care Mess

My comments to: http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20091002/ap_on_go_co/us_health_care_overhaul

Please tell me how my Health Care insurance premiums will NOT increase if we continue pushing a plan with these in it:
1. No insurer can deny coverage.
2. No insurer can charge those with preexisting conditions a higher premium (means, all others will have to cover the added risk and expenses = higher premiums for everyone except for those with preexisting conditions)
3. Federal subsidies for those who cannot afford coverage (they are planning to fund the states with subsidies and let them negotiate plans for these people (fine, unless they end up in same administered plans as me which would mean I must pick up the difference from subsidized amount and premium we all pay). And how much will you STATE TAXES go up to cover the administration costs of this negotiation?
4. Costs would be borne by Health Care providers (who, of course will pass it along to us via higher premiums)
5. Costs also paid by billions of dollar cuts to Medicare and Medicaid (can you hear me without that hearing aid?)
6. Still being discussed is making it more difficult to itemize Health Care costs on taxes (what does this mean? Instead of paying taxes to support the new reformed plan we can deduct less? Sounds like a tax to me if this is the case. Of course, the Dems provided no details or answers to this question)

The statement by the Democrats that premiums will not increase MUST BE A LIE!

A good amendment from Cantwell is to implement a program like the state of Washington has where the state negotiates a plan (they have 4) for low income people with income above Medicaid requirements -- up to $44,100 for family of four. Sounds good, but I would ask if these plans are separate from plans most of us would get so our premiums wouldn't go up and the added State taxes to do this.

The MUST BUY or get PENALIZED section remains in the Finance Committee plan. Currently, if a plan exists that costs less than 10% of an individual's (family's) income, then they must buy insurance or pay a penalty up to $1900 per family. Schumer want to lower this to 8% and delay penalties until 2014 with a max of $950 per family. How they are ever going to determine this on an ongoing basis is beyond my beliefs. I suppose they will go to last year's tax form, if you even submitted one, to check. And what if you didn't? Or if you had an anomaly year where you took all your gains because the Bush tax cuts allowed you to not pay any tax on gains or dividends if you are in the15% tax bracket or below and their definition of income will include this -- wow, that would rape a few people.Sometimes I wish I could rattle their heads to see how empty they really are! But, there may be help. Also being considered are EXEMPTIONS to buying insurance that could apply to MILLIONS (let's see now -- current 47M uninsured people = illegals, those on Medicaid, and others. From the others category, we now subtract a millions more of "exemptions" leaving how many? We are going to spend $900 Billion over 10 year for how many new people and at what increased premium?

To end, let me reemphasize the one-liner in the article that states that this Finance Committee legislation needs to be merged with the one from HELP (Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee. The latter HAS the PUBLIC OPTION in it (that has already been defeated in two votes!). Harry Reid is pushing this in the Senate, while Pelozi demands that it be in.

Then, finally, President Obama, needs to live up to his promise that he will not sign legislation that adds a dime to the deficit. I am sure the definition of deficit will change radically (as he has already changed America) to allow him to pass if without LYING AGAIN.

So, here's my forecast:
1. Expect higher premiums than you see today (explained above)
2. Expect longer waits for physician and hospital services (taxes on Health Care providers coupled with more insured people calling on them and fewer and fewer physicians going into or remaining in the system)
3. Hello Elderly -- there's no hope for you (losing services and increasing costs). btw: who do you think will be also shelling out more money to Medicare and Medicaid? Of course, this won't be called a rise in INCOME taxes!
4. The first 3 don't apply if they just stop the nonsense and use Common Sense and fix the current system as I explained in previous blogs.