White single/divorced men hardest hit.
Example:
Man who is working and making 48K a year (blue collar)
Out of that comes child support at 12K a year
Then comes taxes at around 18K a year
Net income: 18K a yaar
Child support doesn’t qualify as a valid hardship expense as it pertains to Obamacare subsidies (whereas alimony does count)
Meanwhile, the recipient of the child support does not pay taxes on it (the payor does as well as any admin fees for the collection unit) nor does recipient have to claim it as income for the purpose of taxes or getting obamacare subsidies.
I know someone personally in this situation and having to pay $700 on top of in “responsibility fees” whilst still having no health care insurance is insane. Catch 22 is that no way can someone who has a take home pay of 18K can afford health insurance premiums on top of that. A lot of small businesses, the backbone of this country, do not offer medical insurance so it’s roll the dice time.
They don’t have to pay it if they don’t get a refund.
The government was smart to tax people stupid enough to use Uncle Sam as a savings account.