Jim,
Isn’t it so, that the forcing part, is that those who do not buy insurance must simply be responsible for their own hospital bills if they don’t buy insurance? Sounds like a choice to me, in that the taxpayer would not be saddled with the debts of those who chose to roll the dice.
Hey, I love Thompson, At this point I’m for a Thompson/Romney ticket. Mark Levin can’t be wrong! (If he was, I wouldn’t tell ‘em!)
I have said that Thompson could be in for 8, and then Romney could run for Pres. in 2016.
Great post HC, I’m with you!
Agree. Best bet for 16 years of GOP executive branch control.
Which clause in the constitution empowers the government to force citizens to purchase insurance? What happened to individual liberty?
Massachusetts residents who remain uninsured in 2008 will begin facing monthly fines based on their age and income, according to new regulations unveiled by the Department of Revenue on Monday.Here are how much different people may have to pay:
— The highest fines are leveled at those earning three times the annual federal poverty level, or $30,636 for an individual. Individuals aged 27 or older who are over that income threshold will pay the top fine of $76 a month, or $912 a year.
— Married couples earning more than $41,076 would each have to pay the top fine for a combined penalty of $1,824 if they are both uninsured for the entire year.
— Those aged 18-26 earning more than $30,636 will pay $56 a month or $672 a year.
— Individuals earning between $20,425 and $25,536 face a $420 fine for the year. Those earning between $15,325 and $20,424 face a $210 fine.
— There are no fines for individuals earning less than $15,325.
Penalties for not obtaining health care in 2008 [Happy New Year from ROMNEYCARE]
This is a government MANDATED program. You have absolutely no choice about participation. I don't have healthcare and I DO pay as I go. I've been fortunate not to have extremely high healthcare needs but right now, I can't afford $400 - $500 a month for insurance.
We just went through the insurance buying process in MA in November. You do NOT have a choice. If you didn't buy insurance before the end of the year, you'll see a surcharge on your MA income tax form of $216. If you still don't have it after the next year, you'll get an even bigger surcharge; about $1800 per couple. Apparently, Romney's original plan called for the ability of folks to 'opt out' of having to buy insurance, only if they posted a $10,000 bond in the event that you had to go to the ER. The Dems in the legislature didn't let that stand. Business Week has an article about it that explains the fines.
It turned out to be a good deal for us because SirKit is self-employed. However, the cost of the most bare bones policy we could get, with a high deductible was still over $700 a month. When we move to MS, the same policy will cost about $450 a month. We opened an HSA to cover those things we chose not to cover, including dental and prescription coverage. Not sure about dental, but prescription coverage would have cost us another $1800 a year. We weren't sick enough at the time to need that kind of coverage. However, on Christmas Day, I ended up in the ER in A-Fib, ended up being admitted for a 5 day stay. Had several tests because of reduced heart function, and went home with 6 different heart meds. Thankfully, ALL of them were available through the Wal-Mart $4 prescription program!
The biggest problem we found with the MA program is that you cannot choose just a catastrophic insurance plan and use the HSA for out of pocket expenses. The Dems would never have allowed that.