Obama's Cadillac Tax

I have to say that I secretly love the "Cadillac Tax" backed by the current Obama regime. In fact I think all conservatives should feel the same way. Why? Because it is one of the best examples of how bad this health care idea really is.

Think about it, how often do you see the big labor unions and the rich and the middle class all upset about something? When that happens you know it has to be a bad deal. Of course the scary thing is that it is also one of the best examples of how this current regime has absolutely no regard for the will of the people.

So What is the Cadillac Tax Anyway?

For those of you that aren't familiar with the Cadillac tax here's what it is (other than just another shameful grab for your wallet to try and make this bill have a "zero deficit impact"). The latest deal, after the unions used their clout, is that there is a 40% federal excise tax on health insurance premiums exceeding $8,900 for individuals or $24,000 for families.

What this means is that if you are single and your employer pays $10,000 a year for your health insurance then under the new plan their cost will go up by $440 (40% of 10,000-8900)

Of course there are the usual exemptions and exceptions that I'm sure will be fully exploited in the near future. Dental and vision are excluded and the thresholds are higher for high cost states (read democratic strongholds like California and New York) along with high cost professions.

Big Deal, My Employer Pays It. Not Me Right?

Well it will be you paying it if you happen to be buying your own insurance. But even if it is your employer think about it from their perspective. What kind of incentives does that create when you multiply the new tax by thousands of employees?

Well let's see, to avoid the Cadillac Tax you're either going to buy a cheaper policy (less coverage) or you'll look for ways to reduce the number of employees. The options to reduce employees are numerous. Companies can just simply not hire as many people and make you work harder or maybe they will start outsourcing more. Isn't it funny how the Democrats whine and complain about outsourcing yet they implement all these policies that encourage it?

So while you might not be the one writing the check, you may end up working a lot harder or worse yet-trading your paycheck for a unemployment check. You sure would need the government then now wouldn't you? That's exactly what the Democrats want. Don't forget if you're the party that is known for taking care of the poor you kind of need to make sure that there is plenty of poor around to vote for you!

But aren't these for "High Cost Insurance Plans" That's why they are called Cadillac Plans after all!

Most people will be surprised by how much their health insurance premiums really are. According to the Kaiser Family Foundation, the average premium for a single employee was $4,824 and $13,375 for a family. Those numbers sound well below the proposed threshold so we're all safe right? Nope!

Don't forget that the average premiums rose 131% from 1999-2009 which means at the current rate by 2019 we'll end up at $11,143 for a single employee and $30,896 for a family. The new Cadillac Tax would come to $897 for a single employee and $2758 for families! What happened Mr. "I'm not going to raise taxes" Obama?

Now some claim that the point of this whole health care bill is to reduce the cost of healthcare so wouldn't that mean that premiums should go down? Let me answer that with a question: When was the last time you say anything at all get more efficient, effective or cheaper when the government got involved? I have yet to meet anybody who can name a single thing.

Why is it that we all love to joke about government bureaucracy, waste and ineffectiveness yet everybody seems willing to hand over their health care.

Oh wait, everybody isn't are they? The vast majority of the public is against this bill but they are doing it anyway. Why? Power, pure and simple. The Democrats simply feel that the long term benefits of this bill (i.e. power they will get) is worth much more than any short term backlash.

Don't forget, when this all blows up, they are going to be there saying that we need them to fix it. I say we support abortion just once and flush this whole bill down the toilet.