Millions could see taxes up in Bush health plan

[AgentJean]

http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20070123/pl_nm/bush_healthcare_dc_2

About 30 million Americans could face a tax hike under President George W. Bush's plan to expand health insurance coverage and address rising health care costs, the White House said on Monday.

"There are always going to be some winners and some losers, but the people who might initially be losers have options," Kate Baicker, a member of the White House Council of Economic Advisors, told reporters.

There are about 47 million people with no health insurance in a country of 300 million. Baicker said Bush's tax proposal would result in "upwards of 3 million or more newly insured people."

Bush plans to highlight the plan in Tuesday's State of the Union speech to the U.S. Congress.

Bush is proposing to make health insurance premiums taxable income, with people who get employer-provided plans that cost more than $15,000 a year facing a tax hike if they do not get cheaper insurance, the White House said. Average family coverage offered by employers costs about $11,500 annually.

The president is proposing tax deductions -- $15,000 for a family and $7,500 for an individual whether or not they purchase their own health coverage or get it from their job -- to help buy insurance.

The plan also envisions funneling federal money to states that seek to arrange for uninsured residents to get coverage. But a White House statement said this would involve no new federal spending or entitlements, instead "allocating current federal health care funding more effectively."

Baicker said about 30 million Americans could face higher taxes under the president's plan "if they didn't change their behavior" -- meaning giving up an employer's more generous health plan in favor of a less-costly one. The White House added that "more than 100 million Americans" would save money under Bush's plan.

Baicker described Bush's proposed tax changes as "revenue-neutral," meaning they would neither increase nor decrease the overall income taxes paid to Washington.

DEMOCRATS SKEPTICAL

"The President's so-called health care proposal won't help the uninsured, most of whom have limited incomes and are already in low tax brackets," said California Democratic Rep. Pete Stark, Chairman of the Ways and Means Health Subcommittee.

"But it will hurt middle-income Americans, whose employers will shift even more cost and risk to their employees," he added.

Health and Human Services Secretary Mike Leavitt said Bush will emphasize opposition to proposals favored by some Democrats for universal health coverage run by the government. Without offering many details, Leavitt also said Bush wants to "partner with the states" in developing plans that provide Americans access to basic affordable health coverage.

Under Bush's plan, states could subsidize health insurance premiums directly, they could establish high-risk pools for the sickest people, and could help individuals and small businesses create their own insurance pools.

To get the federal money states would need to make health insurance affordable by such means as "reducing benefit or premium mandates," it said. Currently, each state has its own set of mandated conditions that health insurers must cover.

States already work with the federal government under the Medicare, Medicaid and children's health insurance plans for the elderly, needy and the very young.

Maybe I'm missing something from this article but how does taxing people who have an expensive health insurance policy help?

Yes $15,000 dollars a year for health insurance is a lot of money (about $1,250) a month, but there are some people because of health problem or medical history it will be that expensive and if they want good coverage they have to shell out the big bucks.

Bush is a freaking moron if he thinks taxing high insurance premiums is a good thing.

Personally, I currently pay less that $130 a month for my coverange thru my former employer. I shopped around and when I get my own indivisudal policy it will cost me about the same. I'm single, 24, non smoking male.

Now you take someone 60 years old, with high blood pressure, high cholesterol, had a knee replacement a few years ago, will need the other knee replaced in a few years, a long with a lot of other repair work that needs to be done sooner or later, that person's premiums will could very well cost 10 times what I'm paying for the same policy.That is if the insruance companies would even offer the same policy. This is how insurnace works, but why should this older guy be punished by the FED because he wants the same quality insurance as me and is willing to pay the big bucks for it?

This is some @$$ backwards socialist crap.

 

[Arkaign]

Repost sorry

 

[AgentJean]

Originally posted by: Arkaign
Repost sorry

A link would be nice, I did a search for "health plan" nothing came up.

 

[sandorski]

Not Socialist, just ass backwards.

 

[Arkaign]

http://forums.anandtech.com/messageview...atid=52&threadid=1993912&enterthread=y

:shocked::|

 

[AgentJean]

ok, lock this thread already.

Thank you.

 

[ntdz]

Wait, let me get this straight...liberals bitch when Bush passes tax cuts, and now they are bitching when he raises them.

 

[Arkaign]

Originally posted by: ntdz
Wait, let me get this straight...liberals bitch when Bush passes tax cuts, and now they are bitching when he raises them.

How do you know the people complaining about this are 'liberals'?

 

[tweaker2]

Originally posted by: ntdz
Wait, let me get this straight...liberals bitch when Bush passes tax cuts, and now they are bitching when he raises them.

i think it's because bush's tax cuts always favor the rich, and bush's tax increases always hurt the middle and poor classes.

 

[ebaycj]

Originally posted by: tweaker2

Originally posted by: ntdz
Wait, let me get this straight...liberals bitch when Bush passes tax cuts, and now they are bitching when he raises them.

i think it's because bush's tax cuts always favor the rich, and bush's tax increases always hurt the middle and poor classes.

QFT