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WASHINGTON – President Barack Obama signaled to House Democratic leaders Wednesday that they'll have to drop their opposition to taxing high-end health insurance plans to pay for health coverage for millions of uninsured Americans.

In a meeting at the White House, Obama expressed his preference for the insurance tax contained in the Senate's health overhaul bill, but largely opposed by House Democrats and organized labor, Democratic aides said. The aides spoke on condition of anonymity because the meeting was private.

House Democrats want to raise income taxes on high-income individuals instead and are reluctant to abandon that approach, while recognizing that they will have to bend on that and other issues so that Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, D-Nev., can maintain his fragile 60-vote majority support for the bill.

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/201...health_care_overhaul
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You knew this was coming, right? You know the drill. No new taxes (we'll just raise the taxes you already pay!) Its the political way. Obama spewed forth the claim that the everyday working joe wouldnt pay for this program, yet do you honestly think your employer is going to pick up the tab for the 40% tax on the healthcare they purchase for you? I think its on insurance that costs $8000.00 or $8500.00 or more a year. Thats alot of employees insurance. And thats total, not what you pay. I pay $240.00 a month, thats $2880.00 a year for me. But my employer pays about an additional $9000.00 a year for me. That means my insurance costs a total of about 12 Grand, well within the 'Cadillac Insurance' Obama wants to ad 40% to.

And you know what my 'Cadillac Insurance' consists of? Family coverage with a $250 deductible and 30% copay/coinsurance (not $30.00, 30 PERCENT). That would be average coverage in my book.

Obama and the democrats hope that the general public dont think about the part the employer pays when you think about that 8500.00 number. Some folks might think my insurance is well below that because I only pay $2880.00 a year. But the truth is my insurance, as well as many others, will have an additional 40% tax.

Look at it like this, if my employer only passes on the 40% of what I am currently paying, thats an additional $1152 a year out of my pocket. And thats assuming that my employer doesnt pass on any of their $3600.00 increase on to me as well.

This is heath insurance reform? And I thought the health insurance industry was raping us.....

Kirk
Taxing the "high end" insurance plans is just the start of rationing health care. They know that many people (including myself) will no longer be able to afford a decent health care plan because of the added tax and we will have to switch to a less expensive alternative with fewer benefits. On a the bright side this will help take care of the not enough Doctors for everyone problem.
This is a scheme to raise taxes on the middle class. As employers drop the "Cadillac" plans, they will offer more basic plans to employees. Employees will probably receive a payraise to make up for the lost insurance -- a raise equaling to the difference in what the employer orginally paid for insurance vs. the new cheaper basic plan. Raise gets taxed under old tax rate, but taxed just the same.

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