Obama"Care" Update

Ever since the Obamacrats produced their health care bill, I’ve been trying to get my hands on it. They won’t release it, because they’re afraid of you. Indeed, despite demands that the bill be available for viewing before it is voted upon, Sen. Baucus (D-Marx) has held this bill tighter to his chest than photos of himself sodomizing a poodle. But details have slipped out. . . this poodle talked.

Here are some of the recent nuggets of which you should be aware. First, my little Obama supporters, don’t expect to get coverage. Secondly, the amount of pain you and your state experience will depend on who your Senator is:

Coverage? You Don’t Get No Stinking Coverage

Most of Obama’s supporters are in for a shock on health care. Like greedy children staring at the big box under the (non-denominational) Christmas tree, they think that with the stroke of a pen, their Lord and Master Obama will provide them with government provided health insurance. Suddenly, keeping that second SUV doesn’t seem like such a hardship!

But guess what children, the box is empty. The Baucus bill provides government coverage by expanding Medicaid. But it doesn’t expand it very far. Under the Baucus bill, anyone making 133% or less of the poverty level will become eligible for free coverage. That’s anyone making $14,440 or less per year. The rest of you have to buy your own.

Yes, you read that right. If you make $14,441 or more, you don’t get coverage! What? That's not what you were promised? Just wait. . . there’s more. You will be required to buy your own coverage. Yep. No more skipping that cost just because you think you’re healthy. If you don’t buy insurance, you will be fined up to $1,900. And if you continue to refuse, you will be sent to jail and fined $25,000. You dirty, disloyal criminal.

But don’t worry, the Democrats feel your pain. They understand this could be a hardship: “For some people it's going to be a heavy lift,” said Sen. Tom Carper, D-Del. They just don’t care. Now that’s tough love!

By the way, ever wonder who will turn you in for not having insurance? Doctors. Isn’t it interesting that the Democrats don’t want doctors turning in illegal aliens because they don’t want to discourage them from getting needed medical treatment. . . but, somehow, that concern goes away when it comes to you?

So how will this play out? Let’s assume you make $15,000 a year. If you can find health insurance at the current private sector rates, you will now need to cough up $4,700 just for the insurance (on average, people spend another $2,500 out of pocket if they actually use it -- so we’ll just assume you can’t afford to use it. . . though you still need to buy it). Sounds like a great deal huh? Oh, it doesn’t? Well, fortunately, you have an out. Just pay the fine rich boy.

So what will Obamacare mean for you? It means that you will get to pay $1,900 of your $15,000 income to Obama so that others can have insurance. Aren’t you glad you voted for this clown? Make sure you write “Yes We Can” on your check. :-)

But don’t worry, at least you’ll get plenty of schadenfreude out of it. The Obamacrats are promising 15 new taxes on health care providers -- because nothing controls costs and encourages innovation better than tax hikes. The insurance industry now is also claiming that the cost of private insurance will go up 49% within 10 years -- that’s another $6,000 a year for a family of four.

Oh, and if your employer does decide to provide health insurance, as unlikely as that may seem, you will be required to enroll in that plan no matter what the cost. At least, you’ll get a tax credit to the extent the cost of the insurance exceeds 13% of your income. . . up to that, you’re on your own.

That's Democratic solutions for you. . .

(Not)Spreading The Pain: Some Animals Are More Equal Than Others

And there is one more really fascinating detail about which you should be aware (thanks to Cheryl for pointing this out). According to the Wall Street Journal, some groups are being exempted from the pain. . .

As mentioned above, ObamaCare works by expanding Medicaid (and by forcing the rest of you to help yourselves). Medicaid is paid for largely by state government, though they do receive some blockgrants from the feds.

According to the Journal, four states will have the federal government pick up the tag: Nevada, Oregon, Rhode Island and Michigan. According to Harry Reid (D- NEVADA), these are the states that “are suffering the most.” Did I mention that Harry Reid, who is losing his re-election campaign in a big way in Nevada, represents Nevada? Perhaps that’s just a coincidence? Perhaps it’s also just a coincidence that Debbie Stabenow (D-Michigan) and Ron Wyde (D-Oregon) sit on the Finance Committee, which drafted this bill?

But wait, there are more coincidences:

• Debbie Stabenow (D-UAW) and John Kerry (D-Masshole) got $5 billion dollars included in the bill to defray the costs of medical insurance for union members. How nice.

• Chucky Cheese Schumer (D-Wall Street) got a higher threshold for New Yorkers and Massholes before the feds start taxing your insurance benefits. So if you live in Kentucky, you get taxed on any plan that costs more than $21,000 a year. Chuck’s friends don’t get taxed until their plans cost $25,000 a year. Strangely, this increased threshold (which applies to only 17 states) applies almost entirely to blue states.

• Bob Menendez (D-Pfizer) of New Jersey got $1 billion in tax credits for New Jersey drug makers, to offset the taxes that Baucus is imposing on. . . drug makers.

And there’s more to come when this sucker hits the floor of the house!

So the next time you hear some self-righteous leftist whine that they are finally going to get theirs or that the Democrats somehow represent the little guy or are somehow ethical, you laugh in their dirty little face and you assure them that they are indeed about to get theirs. . .


Finally, let me state officially that it's time to throw Sen. Olympia Snowe (RINO-Traitorville) out of the Republican Party. Despite the utter immorality, stupidity, and futility of this bill, Snowe decided to betray America because: "when history calls, history calls." Ah yes, the logic of serial killers, dictators, quislings, and RINOs.