ELECTIONS HAVE CONSEQUENCES Interesting article: Well, Obamacare is now official, which means that a lot more people in the United States will have health insurance. And it also means a lot more people will be paying more taxes. (You didn't think Obamacare was free, did you?) Here are some of the new taxes you're going to have to pay to pay for Obamacare: ---A 3.8% surtax on "investment income" when your adjusted gross income is more than $200,000 ($250,000 for joint-filers). What is "investment income?" Dividends, interest, rent, capital gains, annuities, house sales, partnerships, etc. Taxes on dividends will rise from 15% to 18.8%--if Congress extends the Bush tax cuts. If Congress does not extend the Bush tax cuts, taxes on dividends will rise from 15% to a shocking 43.8%. (WSJ) ---A 0.9% surtax on Medicare taxes for those making $200,000 or more ($250,000 joint). You already pay Medicare tax of 1.45%, and your employer pays another 1.45% for you (unless you're self-employed, in which case you pay the whole 2.9% yourself). Next year, your Medicare bill will be 2.35%. (WSJ) ---Flexible Spending Account contributions will be capped at $2,500. Currently, there is no tax-related limit on how much you can set aside pre-tax to pay for medical expenses. Next year, there will be. If you have been socking away, say, $10,000 in your FSA to pay medical bills, you'll have to cut that to $2,500. (ATR.org) ---The itemized-deduction hurdle for medical expenses is going up to $10,000. Right now, any medical expenses over $7,500 per year are deductible. Next year, that hurdle will be $10,000. (ATR.org) ---The penalty on non-medical withdrawals from Healthcare Savings Accounts is now 20% instead of 10%. That's twice the penalty that applies to annuities, IRAs, and other tax-free vehicles. (ATR.org) ---A tax of 10% on indoor tanning services. This has been in place for two years, since the summer of 2010. (ATR.org) ---A 40% tax on "Cadillac Health Care Plans" starting in 2018.Those whose employers pay for all or most of comprehensive healthcare plans (costing $10,200 for an individual or $27,500 for families) will have to pay a 40% tax on the amount their employer pays. The 2018 start date is said to have been a gift to unions, which often have comprehensive plans. (ATR.org) ---A"Medicine Cabinet Tax" that eliminates the ability to pay for over-the-counter medicines from a pre-tax Flexible Spending Account. This started in January 2011. (ATR.org) ---A "penalty" tax for those who don't buy health insurance. This will phase in from 2014-2016. It will range from $695 per person to about $4,700 per person, depending on your income. (More details here.) ---A tax on medical devices costing more than $100. Starting in 2013, medical device manufacturers will have to pay a 2.3% excise tax on medical equipment. This is expected to raise the cost of medical procedures. (Breitbart.com) So those are some of the new taxes you'll be paying that will help pay for Obamacare. Any big ones I've missed? Note that these taxes are both "progressive" (aimed at rich people) and "regressive" (aimed at the middle class and poor people). The big ones--the 3.8% investment income hike and the Medicare tax increase--only hit you if you're making more than $200,000 a year. The rest hit you no matter how much you're making. Here's How Much The Obamacare Penalty Tax Will Cost You Many Americans are furious that Obamacare will require them to buy health insurance. Most of these folks seem to hate the idea that Obama is forcing them to do something more than they hate the idea of shelling out money. But for those who also care about the money, here are the details. The good news is that, for most people, the "penalty tax" for those who choose not to buy health insurance will cost a lot less than health insurance. As with everything tax-related, there's no simple answer to "How much is the Obamacare penalty tax?" But here are some key points, from FactCheck.org: ---The penalty/tax will be phased in from 2014 to 2016. ---The minimum penalty/tax in 2016 will be $695 per person and up to 3-times that per family. After 2016, these amounts will increase at the rate of inflation. ---The minimum penalty/tax per person will start at $95 in 2014 (and then increase through 2016) ---No family will ever pay more than 3X the per-person penalty, regardless of how many people are in the family. ---The $695 per-person penalty is only for those who make between $9,500 and ~$37,000 per year. If you make less than ~$9.500, you're exempt. If you make more than ~$37,000, your penalty is calculated by the following formula... ---The penalty is 2.5% of any household income above the level at which you are required to file a tax return. That level is currently $9,500 per person and $19,000 per couple. The penalty on any income above that is 2.5%. So the penalty can get expensive quickly if you make a lot of money. ---However, the penalty can never be more than the cost of a "Bronze" heath insurance plan purchased through one of the state "exchanges" that will be created as part of Obamacare. The CBO estimates that these policies will cost $4,500-$5,000 per person and $12,000-$12,500 per family in 2016, with the costs rising thereafter. So, basically, you're looking at penalties of approximately the following at the following income levels: Less than $9,500 income = $0 $9,500 - $37,000 income = $695 $50,000 income = $1,000 $75,000 income = $1,600 $100,000 income = $2,250 $125,000 income = $2,900 $150,000 income = $3,500 $175,000 income = $4,100 $200,000 income = $4,700 Over $200,000 = The cost of a "bronze" health-insurance plan The IRS will collect the penalty-tax, a fact that will no doubt further enrage those who hate Obamacare. But here's some more good news for those folks: The IRS will not have the power to charge you criminally or seize your assets if you refuse to pay. The IRS will only have the ability to sue you. And the most the IRS can collect from you if it wins the suit is 2X the amount you owe. So if you want to thumb your nose at the penalty-tax, the IRS won't be able to do as much to you as they could if you refused to pay, say, income tax. By the way, the following folks will be exempt from the penalty-tax: Those who make less than $9,500 Employees whose employers only offer plans that cost more than 8% of the employee's income Those with "hardships" Members of Indian tribes Members of certain religions that don't pay Social Security tax, such as Amish, Hutterites or Mennonites DEMOCRACY IS A DEVICE TO ENSURE WE DON'T GET ANY BETTER LEADERSHIP THAN WE DESERVE
Taxes (if that's what you insist on calling it) are the price we pay for living in a civilized society. And America just became a little more civilized last week.
The only people who lost any freedom because of Obamacare are the people who can no longer free load who have no insurance, and then have some emergency they have to use medical facilities and personnel for.
That's the amusing thing about all of this. They claim to like all the good parts about it except the method that pays for it... yet they also claim to be fiscally conservative. The fact that they cannot see their own cognitive dissonance is really, truly hilarious. But that's the GOP for you these days, isn't it? More fantasy than reality.
The SCOTUS classified the mandate as a tax, which was the only way the law passed Constitutional muster. In doing so, SCOTUS contradicted what is actually in the law. There, it is called a penalty. In the SCOTUS ruling, the Justices in the majority took the extraordinary step of redefining a portion of existing law, shaping it to pass the Constitutional test. They, in effect, became legislators. Further, Sh!tbrick's own attorney during the hearings on Sh!tbrickcare argued both ways, first arguing it's not a tax and then arguing that it is a tax. They literally argued both sides to cover themselves. Goddammit, I hate liberals.
They may have blamed the health care legislation on it, but it's not true. The tax on cadillac plans doesn't take effect until 2018 - if they dropped it already, they were just using that as an excuse.
Do IT!!! What is true freedom other than the ability to act on one's desires. Only if you do it will you know you are truly free!
I hate that try to talk about Supreme Court arguments without actually understanding anything that they are talking about.
Lets be clear. One justice classified it as a tax. The other 8 didnt think so. The other 4 justices in the majority ruled that the government had the power to mandate everyone buy insurance under the commerce clause. Furthermore, you are totally free to disagree by please be an adult and quit using juvenile language like that. Be an adult.
I see. Thank you. They did, in fact, directly tell me it was due to "Obamacare". No surprise that they lied. Like I said, I am still happy with my health insurance so I didn't bother getting upset over it.
