Health Care “Reform” Will Cost You

The Senate Finance Committee has just green lighted a version of a health reform bill that could end up costing you. One of the key elements of the legislation is that everyone will be required to purchase health insurance — or pay a penalty. Um, I guess that’s one way to get universal health care coverage. Both parties are to blame on this one, since it’s clear that the people crafting this legislation are not really interested in offering true solutions to the problem of health care that is rapidly becoming unaffordable for more and more people. (They are too busy enjoying campaign donations from the health care industry.)

Requirement to pay for health care coverage — or pay the penalty

This “reform” bill does try to defray some of the cost of the requirement to pay for health care coverage. The penalty (which could be up to $1,900 per family) would be delayed and the maximum would be $200 in 2014 and $800 in 2017. And then go higher from there. There is also a provision to exempt those whose income is so low that they cannot find a health insurance plan that takes up less than 8% of their adjusted gross income. There are subsidies to help low-income people buy insurance over the next 10 years.

There is room in the bill for states to create their own public option plans, if they would like. In such cases those that opted for a state plan would not get the subsidies for paying for insurance; those would go to the state. Additionally, the bill includes amendments penalizing insurance companies for having plans that are too costly. Whatever that means. Such penalties would just be passed on to the rest of us anyway.

In the end, the emotion-infused and fact-lacking “debate” over a public option has done what it was intended to do: Prevent an alternative that might actually make health care more affordable for most people. Instead, we might be forced to buy into a health insurance program that we already know is broken.

Max Baucus (D-Montana), the head of the committee, said that he hopes that health insurance companies will price their plans better as a result of everyone being forced to buy, unless they can’t afford it. Good luck with that.