Has anyone heard of the government forcing people into the government program who currently purchase their own insurance? not through an employer.
I have not heard about that. I am skeptical that this is true. I am, however, very concerned that employers will find it less expensive to pay the tax on having uninsured employees and doing away with their insurance.
Sorry for coming in late on this, but do you really believe the GOP doesn't want healthcare? The problem is the cost. As someone in the profession, I can tell you exactly what has happened. WWII salary freezes caused employers to offer health benefits instead as a lure to get new recruits. Baby boomers abused the system their parents gave them for years. ie: everything has always "been" free as long as they grew up with their folks or had a job. Boomers that are ailing now are raising current insurance rates sky-high. Insurance dumbasses used reserves and invested in wholly unsuitable investments. I think universal "oh sh**" coverage should be available to everyone, and we should all share the wealth. That said, as a smoker, people who knowingly put themselves in jeopardy should be taxed more, and there should be a high enough deductible that hypochondriacs and pill-poppers can't abuse it. Anyone argue with this model?
I doubt it. People don't just take a job on salary - they look at the total package, and that includes health plans. If someone offers you a job without health insurance, meaning you have to pay your own way or take a public plan, it's going to make that employer a less attractive place to work. If paying a tax is a more viable option and in effect would cut business costs since they would pay a lot less, I think employers...that is business, would embrace the plan and really be lobbying for it. They are not. Wonder why?
I am more concerned on how it will effect businesses. As you go down the road, look at all the businesses that have less than a dozen employees. The vast majority of these businesses that do not offer insurance is not because they are greedy, but because they simply can not afford to. As a contractor, i am very pissed at being required to get health insurance. This is not health reform. This is another way to collect revenue. At the end of the day, the same number of people who are not covered will still remain uncovered, or worse, they will be stuck with crappy insurance that will cost the person more in the long run.
It would be even less expensive for those businesses to not provide health care now, though - they don't even have to pay the tax. They could simply let their employees get their own insurance. I don't think there's any reason a company that provides health insurance now wouldn't do so if there was universal coverage. As it stands, though, more and more companies are already taking this route because health insurance gets increasingly unaffordable.
But if not having insurance turns into a net drain on society then it makes sense to require everyone to have coverage. We live in a world where not taking care of yourself can hurt others directly and indirectly. Examples include not being properly vaccinated against a potential pandemic. Another example would be that ignoring a disease in the early treatable stage might require expensive care later on. I speak as someone who has currently opted out of having health insurance. I let my cobra expire - and it has not been without risks. I hurt my back and had to pay $250 out of pocket to see a doctor. Still overall, it's been cheaper - although i have not done things i normally would have. I will soon take a full-time job and get insurance from my employer. But if that employer did not offer insurance and instead compensated me with more cash, i'd simply buy my own insurance. However, I'd rather buy my own insurance than take a public health plan. This is what a lot of people fail to realize - a lot of folks would much rather have a private insurer than take a gov't plan to save a few bucks. I mean, the perception of a gov't plan will be that it's substandard, and private insurers will always be able to feed that perception with advertising. At the end of the day, I think people will be happy to have a gov't plan to back them up in case they run out of something like COBRA or can't afford to pay the premiums after they lose their job. It will indeed put pressure on insurance companies to control costs to keep premiums stable - which in turn will put pressure on hospitals to keep costs reasonable - this can be beneficial. Competition is good. My only concern is not creating a bigger budget deficit.
