[EDNY]

There is no shortage of complaints about the Affordable Care Act, the unfortunately named massive health-care law still roiling the nation. Embarrassing website issues and keep-your-doctor-keep-your-plan backtracking have occupied center stage. Add to that a kind of Hunger Games, the system’s voracious need to sign up young people to offset the cost for others. Come on down, say the advertisements.

It must be underscored that this isn’t only the President’s law. Congress passed it, and it is hard to get past the naming ironies so prevalent in Washington. Taxes and fees abound, and when it comes out of your pocket, it matters little whether a tax or fee label is applied. In 2014, Americans must dig deeper for the health care they need in ways that don’t meet the eye.

As with many tax laws–and on many fundamental levels, the Affordable Care Act is a tax law–determining exactly where the tax burden falls isn’t always clear. One of the new taxes funds the Patient-Centered Outcomes Research Institute (PCORI). (I wish this institute included “affordable” for it makes a better acronym.) This 2% levy on health plans is expected to collect a cool $8 billion this year alone.

By 2018, annual receipts from the little 2% climb to $14.3 billion. Over a decade, it reaps over $100 billion. Here comes the zinger. Self-insured employers (public companies and 4 of every 5 employers with over 500 employees) don’t have to pay it, according to IRS rules. Oh, but the health plans pay it, right?

That is the Obama administration’s official position. In fact, though, as is plainly no surprise, the insurers pass it along to those who pay the premiums. And that means small employers and people who buy their own insurance have to pay. This is one of the worst features of the new law.

The little guy–small business and the self-employed–have to pay. Kaiser Health News said the new taxes end up on customer bills. One customer’s bill went up by $23.14 a month, or $277.68 annually, for the tax. It meant the person’s monthly premium rose from $322.26 to $345.40.
More taxes? Sure, come on down. A $2 fee per policy too, also earmarked for the Patient Centered Outcomes Research Institute. Insurers also pay a 3.5% user fee to sell medical plans on the HealthCare.gov site. American taxpayers must also pay a 2.3% medical-device tax. There is no doubt where the burden of this tax falls. It will inflate the cost of pacemakers, prosthetic limbs, stents, and more.

That isn’t the end of the higher taxes. Income and payroll taxes go up to fuel the enormous machinery that Obamacare has become. When you pay medical expenses out-of-pocket you should get an income-tax deduction. Americans may be used to deducting medical expenses that exceed 7.5% of their annual income. But now they must eat another 2.5%. The threshold jumps to 10% under the Affordable Care Act. That costs taxpayers about $15 billion over 10 years.

Then there’s the new Medicare tax. Under the Affordable Care Act, individual tax filers earning more than $200,000 and families earning more than $250,000 pay a 0.9% Medicare surtax on top of the existing 1.45% Medicare payroll tax. Then to cap off all this good news, they pay an extra 3.8% Medicare tax on unearned income, such as investment dividends, rental income and capital gains. If you sold your house in 2012, you paid a 15% capital gain tax. Now figure 23.8%.

Welcome. Come on down.

Robert W. Wood

Forbes Link:

http://www.forbes.com/sites/robertwood/2014/01/04/forget-keep-your-plan-website-obamacare-taxes-are-worse/?partner=yahootix

[themoose]

Ed

Don't get me started. Most people in my/our generation are much more aware of what it took to make this country great and the sacrifices that had to be made in order for all of us to be able to have the "American Dream . We ether experienced it first hand or heard stories form our parents about the hardships that they had to endure. To later generations is seems that it's just something that they learn about in history class and that our individual  rights and freedoms are really not that important. They seem believe that everyone is entitled to lead the good life without having to work for it and that the job of our government is to take from the haves and give it to the have nots in order to level the playing field. That's basically what the Affordable Care Act was designed to do. Hopefully the experiment will fail and shake the population up enough to get us back on track.

I hate it when I do political commentary

Moose

[EDNY]

Moose...right on..I know exactly how you feel and can't wait until the November elections up here in NY!

Ed

[Coley]

What I am having trouble with is where did all the toadies come from that want to help Obama ruin this country.

It is going to get a lot worse....soon

[EDNY]

What I am having trouble with is where did all the toadies come from that want to help Obama ruin this country.

It is going to get a lot worse....soon

Again Agreed!  Interesting is that here in NY "State" the liberal population of NYC controls the entire state. About a year ago our governor passed the Safe Act in the middle of the night without public comment as required by our state constitution severely affecting law abiding gun owners. He claims about 80% of the people in NYC support the law...the problem is that almost 40% of NYC residents are "foreign born" and have no born connection to the US Constitution and specifically the 2nd amendment.

So far 52 of New York's 62 counties have passed official resolutions in direct opposition of the NY SAFE Act...the exceptions are obviously NYC counties.  Ask any of the folks supporting the act what specifically they like in it - nearly all of them don't know or have a clue how it affects the law abiding people.

Examples:

If I want to give my grandson one of my rifles....he must pay for and have a background check.

If you are hunting and lose one round in the woods/water...by the new law you must report the loss to the state police.

A person 18 years old can hunt by himself, but can't buy ammo, and you (parents etc) can't give them a bullet because you need a license to distribute ammo and giving them ammo is considered a "straw purchase" and illegal.

To buy "one bullet" you must go through a NCIC background check beginning Jan 15.

You can't buy an AR15 with pistol grip, but take it off and it's legal? (same gun either way)

[themoose]

It would seem that most of the new gun laws around the country are being put in place as a result of some politicians knee jerk reaction to take advantage of an isolated event in order to further their agenda. Most of them make absolute no sense and would have had no affect on preventing any of the incidents that have happened recently. Ed talks about having to report the loss of a bullet in NY to the State Police. What possible good will that do? Are they going to go out and canvas a hundred acres of land in an attempt to find it? I doubt it. The quote" You never let a serious crisis go to waste" from Rahm Emunuel former Obama White House Chief of staff and now Mayor of Chicago  pretty much sums up just how far the liberals will go in order to promote their philosophy of big government control and their attempt to limit our constitutional rights .

Moose

[EDNY]

Moose

That law about lost ammunition was an example of a not thought out knee jerk reaction. They wanted the theft or loss of firearms reported BUT included the term ammunition with it....so by the letter of law any loss or theft of firearms or ammunition must be reported to the state police.

We need a state wide "loss of bullet day"... about once a week.

Ed

[sixball]

Even it Nevada this year our State Legislature passed an over the top background check law thanks to NYCs billionaire x-mayor who purchased our elected representatives. Fortunately for us our Governor vetoed it. This will be a huge problem in the future as rich liberals come west to buy office in the less populated, there fore cheaper to defraud, states. Remember all states have equal representation in the US Senate. Senate seats are relatively cheap in Nevada, New Mexico, Arizona, Utah, Wyoming, Idaho, both Dakotas, and Montana.  Another problem here is that due to a technical oversight in our state constitution we can not recall Harry Reid. Las Vegas runs the state and Vegas is awash with illegals who vote.

[chopper526]

I am 100% in with you guys!
The funny thing is, I can't find anyone who voted for this clown.

[EDNY]

I am 100% in with you guys!
The funny thing is, I can't find anyone who voted for this clown.

That's because they are nocturnal!

[sixball]

With no jobs here a lot of them went home until we can afford to support them again.

[chopper526]

I am 100% in with you guys!
The funny thing is, I can't find anyone who voted for this clown.

That's because they are nocturnal!

BLOOD SUCKING VAMPIRES!!!!!