Analysts Ratings: Small Business and Health Care Reform: Insurance Tax
Small business owners and organizations are rightfully extremely leery over the attempts by the Obama administration to ram a largely unwanted healthcare bill down the throats of American citizens.
What is especially disconcerting for small business owner is the endless changes and adaptations seeming to come forth on an almost weekly basis which makes it impossible to know where the healthcare legislation is going and how it will have an effect on small business specifically.
Rather than get into the complexities of the overall healthcare bill as it relates to small business, I want to focus on one aspect today – insurance taxes; probably the most controversial part of the so-called Baucus bill.
What is the insurance tax?
The insurance tax is an excise tax under the current bill which would be in part laid upon health insurance companies.
At a glance this doesn’t seem to be any big deal in relationship to small business, but we always have to keep in mind that there is never anything such as a free lunch, and something that costs the insurance companies extra – or any company for that matter – will eventually be passed on to others in order to manage profits and operational costs.
So even though the gold-plated type of health insurance targeted by the bill seemingly wouldn’t apply to most small businesses, there can be no doubt insurance companies will pass on the extra costs of the excise tax onto small business via higher premiums in order to pay for those higher costs. The insurance industry wouldn’t just silently absorb those costs or only pass them on to those companies offering the high-level insurance. Just like everything else in the insurance industry, everything is passed on to others in order to determine the pricing of the amount the premium to be paid. So an added tax cost will be spread around to all small businesses through increased premiums, making the cost of doing business higher, and in return, small business will pass those costs on to the consumer, making prices of goods and services higher as well. Everyone loses in this case based on the largely fictional need to change the healthcare system, which the vast majority of Americans are very happy with.
As the chair of the National Small Business Association, Keith Ashmus recently stated, “The tax will be part of the entire cost structure of the insurer. [So] the trigger will be a high-cost plan by company Y, but the impact will be felt by everyone.”
Here is just one area of the healthcare reform bill as it stands today would negatively impact small business. Small businesses and their representatives need to keep a close watch on what is going on in this debate, as the unintended consequences always accompanying those with good intentions cab be devastating, and that’s how it’s shaping up for small businesses who have a strong chance of being hurt from this misguided effort of the Obama administration
How might I acquire an iPad without having those pesky offers or referrals? I've been recently wanting and looking for ...
Great post but complicated to understand since I am from Faroe islands ;-) 
What would be your top three tips for anyone new to this topic?
An Open Message to Congress:
This article provides powerful ammunition to help fight against Obama’s War of Choice on Choice in Health Care, which threatens to violate the rights of patients, doctors, business owners, and insurers on a massive scale unprecedented in American history.
As liberal Members of Congress try to water down health care reform so it is palatable enough to secure the bipartisan support necessary to pass a bill, we should be attacking their proposals on the moral and constitutional fronts by firing off an unrelenting barrage of rhetorical questions such as:
Who in the hell gives you the moral and constitutional authority to force people to buy health insurance — whether they want to or not?
Who in the hell gives you the moral and constitutional authority to force employers to provide health insurance for employees — whether they want to or not?
Who in the hell gives you the moral and constitutional authority to force wealthy people and business owners — and perhaps other groups (medical device manufacturers) targeted for plundering — to pay for the health insurance of other people?
Who in the hell gives you the moral and constitutional authority to force — as you know you must — future generations to pay for the health care of previous generations?
Who in the hell gives you the moral and constitutional authority to force insurance companies to sell, and employers and patients to buy, policies that mandate (force) coverage for specific conditions?
Who in the hell gives you the moral and constitutional authority to force healthier and/or younger adults to pay higher premium rates to subsidize premiums for less healthy and/or older adults?
Who in the hell gives you the moral and constitutional authority to force us to live under a complex bureaucracy that has broad and unchecked authority to influence and control private health care choices — including end of life decisions — that should be made independently by patients and doctors?
Do what you must do as a Member of Congress to water down the health care reform bill, but strip from the final bill any poisonous provisions that would violate the unalienable rights of patients, doctors, business owners, and insurers.
And as you try to water down the bill, remember this:
WATER + POISON = POISONOUS WATER
Most of the proposals in Congress do not address the inflation of health care costs. How about turning to Economics 101 to find ways to (a) increase the supply of insurers, levels of insurance, and providers and (b) lower the demand for unnecessary tests and other health care services?
There are proposals out there that do this, but few of them are getting serious consideration in a Congress dominated by liberals who are hell-bent on imposing their agenda of “social justice” on this country.
The health care reform bill should end crony capitalism by including: (a) tort reform to stop frivolous malpractice lawsuits; (b) ERISSA reform so insurance companies are no longer protected from lawsuits and are accountable for their fraudulent nastiness; (c) provisions that allow individuals and small businesses to create pools and purchase insurance across state boundaries; (d) incentives for individuals to own their own insurance policies rather than being dependent on companies; (e) incentives for individuals to buy, and insurance companies to sell, policies that permanently cover preexisting conditions; (f) ways to eliminate any local, state, and federal mandates for insurance companies to cover specific conditions; and (g) provisions that allow health care professionals to practice in all 50 states without having to be licensed in each and every state.
Dr. Gregory Garamoni
Doctors on Strike for Freedom in Medicine
http://www.doctorsonstrike.com
Dr. Gregory Garamoni
Doctors on Strike for Freedom in Medicine
http://www.doctorsonstrike.com
An Open Message to Congress:
Obama’s War of Choice on Choice in Health Care threatens to violate the rights of patients, doctors, business owners, and insurers on a massive scale unprecedented in American history.
As you try to water down health care reform so it is palatable enough to secure the bipartisan support necessary to pass a bill, we have a few moral and constitutional questions:
Who in the hell gives you the moral and constitutional authority to force people to buy health insurance — whether they want to or not?
Who in the hell gives you the moral and constitutional authority to force employers to provide health insurance for employees — whether they want to or not?
Who in the hell gives you the moral and constitutional authority to force wealthy people and business owners — and perhaps other groups (medical device manufacturers) targeted for plundering — to pay for the health insurance of other people?
Who in the hell gives you the moral and constitutional authority to force — as you know you must — future generations to pay for the health care of previous generations?
Who in the hell gives you the moral and constitutional authority to force insurance companies to sell, and employers and patients to buy, policies that mandate (force) coverage for specific conditions?
Who in the hell gives you the moral and constitutional authority to force healthier and/or younger adults to pay higher premium rates to subsidize premiums for less healthy and/or older adults?
Who in the hell gives you the moral and constitutional authority to force us to live under a complex bureaucracy that has broad and unchecked authority to influence and control private health care choices — including end of life decisions — that should be made independently by patients and doctors?
Do what you must do as a Member of Congress to water down the health care reform bill, but strip from the final bill any poisonous provisions that would violate the unalienable rights of patients, doctors, business owners, and insurers.
And as you try to water down the bill, remember this:
WATER + POISON = POISONOUS WATER
Dr. Gregory Garamoni
Doctors on Strike for Freedom in Medicine
http://www.doctorsonstrike.com
P.S. Most of the proposals in Congress do not address the inflation of health care costs. How about turning to Economics 101 to find ways to (a) increase the supply of insurers, levels of insurance, and providers and (b) lower the demand for unnecessary tests and other health care services?
There are proposals out there that do this, but few of them are getting serious consideration in a Congress dominated by liberals who are hell-bent on imposing their agenda of “social justice” on this country.
The health care reform bill should end crony capitalism by including: (a) tort reform to stop frivolous malpractice lawsuits; (b) ERISSA reform so insurance companies are no longer protected from lawsuits and are accountable for their fraudulent nastiness; (c) provisions that allow individuals and small businesses to create pools and purchase insurance across state boundaries; (d) incentives for individuals to own their own insurance policies rather than being dependent on companies; (e) incentives for individuals to buy, and insurance companies to sell, policies that permanently cover preexisting conditions; (f) ways to eliminate any local, state, and federal mandates for insurance companies to cover specific conditions; and (g) provisions that allow health care professionals to practice in all 50 states without having to be licensed in each and every state.
An Open Message to Congress:
Obama’s War of Choice on Choice in Health Care threatens to violate the rights of patients, doctors, business owners, and insurers on a massive scale unprecedented in American history.
As you try to water down health care reform so it is palatable enough to secure the bipartisan support necessary to pass a bill, we have a few moral and constitutional questions:
Who in the hell gives you the moral and constitutional authority to force people to buy health insurance — whether they want to or not?
Who in the hell gives you the moral and constitutional authority to force employers to provide health insurance for employees — whether they want to or not?
Who in the hell gives you the moral and constitutional authority to force wealthy people and business owners — and perhaps other groups (medical device manufacturers) targeted for plundering — to pay for the health insurance of other people?
Who in the hell gives you the moral and constitutional authority to force — as you know you must — future generations to pay for the health care of previous generations?
Who in the hell gives you the moral and constitutional authority to force insurance companies to sell, and employers and patients to buy, policies that mandate (force) coverage for specific conditions?
Who in the hell gives you the moral and constitutional authority to force healthier and/or younger adults to pay higher premium rates to subsidize premiums for less healthy and/or older adults?
Who in the hell gives you the moral and constitutional authority to force us to live under a complex bureaucracy that has broad and unchecked authority to influence and control private health care choices — including end of life decisions — that should be made independently by patients and doctors?
Do what you must do as a Member of Congress to water down the health care reform bill, but strip from the final bill any poisonous provisions that would violate the unalienable rights of patients, doctors, business owners, and insurers.
And as you try to water down the bill, remember this:
WATER + POISON = POISONOUS WATER
Dr. Gregory Garamoni
Doctors on Strike for Freedom in Medicine
http://www.doctorsonstrike.com
P.S. Most of the proposals in Congress do not address the inflation of health care costs. How about turning to Economics 101 to find ways to (a) increase the supply of insurers, levels of insurance, and providers and (b) lower the demand for unnecessary tests and other health care services?
There are proposals out there that do this, but few of them are getting serious consideration in a Congress dominated by liberals who are hell-bent on imposing their agenda of “social justice” on this country.
The health care reform bill should end crony capitalism by including: (a) tort reform to stop frivolous malpractice lawsuits; (b) ERISSA reform so insurance companies are no longer protected from lawsuits and are accountable for their fraudulent nastiness; (c) provisions that allow individuals and small businesses to create pools and purchase insurance across state boundaries; (d) incentives for individuals to own their own insurance policies rather than being dependent on companies; (e) incentives for individuals to buy, and insurance companies to sell, policies that permanently cover preexisting conditions; (f) ways to eliminate any local, state, and federal mandates for insurance companies to cover specific conditions; and (g) provisions that allow health care professionals to practice in all 50 states without having to be licensed in each and every state.