Last Saturday, The House passed its $1 trillion dollar Healthcare overhaul 220-215, a razor thin margin that means it will most likely not make it through the Senate unless it has some serious “elective surgery”. Supporters called the passage a historic moment on par with the New Deal and the creation of Medicare. They said the bill will finally guarantee health coverage to nearly every American-except that it won’t. That’s one of the main facts eluding all the members of the House Ways and Means committee who gathered in their committee room, toasting glasses of red and white wine, while congratulating each other on Saturday night after the bills passage.
The bill includes a requirement for individuals to have health insurance and for larger businesses to provide it to their employees. Except it does not say who will provide it or how it will be provided, mainly who pays. In fact, this will end up hurting the very people that the Democrats are supposedly trying to help- the middle class. Out of the 14% of American’s who currently do not have a health care plan for many it’s not for a pre-existing condition or lack of funds- it is simply because they choose not to buy one, yet can afford one. It’s exactly like how people drive nice cars; yet still don’t buy insurance for them, even if it’s a law. They are living on the edge at our expense and could care less.
What this bill will essentially do is screw the middle class. By the government mandating that health insurance companies take patients with pre-existing conditions or have substandard health habits like obesity, smokers, etc… then the health insurance companies will inevitable begin feeling more losses because they can’t “cherry pick” healthy applicants anymore which will then result in the companies needing to pay for more care because of the unhealthy. So the healthy middle class worker will see their premiums rise to account for that cost. Then they will be forced out of private care and sent to the back of the line to wait with all the others participating in the government health option.
Now, if you’re poor or old you get government health care currently through Medicare and Medicaid. If you have unemployment benefits you get care and if you don’t have unemployment it means you’re over 21 and haven’t had a job, making you a bum or you’re an illegal alien and shouldn’t be receiving any benefits anyway.
Obama recently said he hasn’t ruled out possibly making it a crime not to have health care and could possibly use fines or jail time to ensure that people buy health care.
“What I think is appropriate is that in the same way that everybody has to get auto insurance and if you don't, you're subject to some penalty, that in this situation, if you have the ability to buy insurance, it's affordable and you choose not to do so, forcing you and me and everybody else to subsidize you, you know, there's a thousand dollar hidden tax that families all across America are -- are burdened by because of the fact that people don't have health insurance, you know, there's nothing wrong with a penalty. I think the general broad principle is simply that people who are paying for their health insurance aren't subsidizing folks who simply choose not to until they get sick and then suddenly they expect free health insurance. That's -- that's basic concept of responsibility that I think most Americans abide by,” Mr. Obama said, “penalties are appropriate for people who try to free ride the system and force others to pay for their health insurance.”
While I agree with what he is trying to say, the same thing is currently happening now and people don’t seem to be paying. The Healthcare bill currently penalizes people $1,000 for not having health care if they can afford it. They funny thing about this “fine” is that it would most likely be cheaper for a lot of kids my age who are just starting their careers to just take the $1,000 fine because it’s really not that much- compared to some plans. So this fine won’t even be effective.
And while the republicans won the battle over abortion, the Democratic Senators have made it clear they won’t pass it without the abortion provision which, means it will be in for a tough fight with middle- American Democratic pro-life Senators.
The bill is too big, too confusing and too costly…. time to pull the plug.
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