Nancy Pelosi warned us. She said the Obama health care bill would have to be passed so we could find out what was in it.
Thanks to Paul Guppy, Vice-President for Research at Washington Policy Center, we’re finding out a few things about the health care bill which is now the health care law.
What may be the biggest Jack in the Health Care Box is a 3.8 percent tax on home sales and other real estate transactions. That means if you sell a house for $200,000 you will owe a tax of $7,600 if the profit from the sale pushed your gross yearly income above $200,000 – which it surely will if you sold the house for that much.
“Other real estate transactions” includes income from rental properties. This is paid by the property owner but renters should not deceive themselves that they are not affected. The property owner gets the money to pay the additional tax from his tenants.
The same facts apply for the $200,000 income threshold. This will be advertised as “soaking the rich” but renters, who are among the lowest earners in society, will be providing the money — in the form of higher rents – that the “rich” will be turning over to the government. Since many rental properties are owned by real estate corporations, very few renters will avoid contributing to the property owner’s payments.
The government labels money gained from renting homes and other property as “unearned income.” And this is typical of the deceptive language the government employs to sugar coat its raids on our money. In truth, “unearned income” is money you find on the bus. There is nothing “unearned” about rental income. The property owner pays the mortgage on the property, he pays for its upkeep, he pays the property taxes on it, he pays to insure it against fire and other damage. In the real world, as opposed to government, rental income is certainly earned.
Another important point, about this additional tax, it is applied to money that is already taxed. The property owner pays regular income tax on the rents he collects. And then pays the additional 3.8 percent tax on that same income if his total income from all sources is more than $200,000. Again, since many rental properties are owned by real estate corporations –or individuals with other sources of income – most will exceed that $200,000 level.
This real estate tax is just one of 19 new taxes imposed by the health care bill. It also imposes a 3.8 percent tax in investment income. Individuals earning over $200,000 and families making $250,000 are covered. Guppy points out that this is not indexed to inflation so, just like alternative minimum tax, it will hit more people every year. Seniors on fixed incomes and people with IRAs and 401 (k) plans will be hardest hit.
Then there is the coerced purchase of health insurance. Individuals who don’t purchase a health insurance policy, or who purchase one that doesn’t suit the government, will be taxed up to 2.5 percent of their annual income. What kind of policy will satisfy the government? You’ll find out when the IRS comes around to take your money.
Families with children will be hit with a penalty of $347 per child, up to $2,250 per family, if they don’t buy a government approved health insurance policy. There are a lot of things wrong with this, in addition to the loss of freedom it entails. A couple may decide they will not have any more children and don’t need maternity coverage. But if the Feds include maternity benefits in the required coverage, that couple will be forced to buy and pay for it.
The government may decide that a suitable health insurance policy must pay for abortions. Americans who oppose abortion on moral and religious grounds would be forced to pay for a policy that covers hem. The bottom line is that nobody knows what kinds of policy we’ll have to buy to avoid the penalty.
There are just too many families with too many differing needs and preferences for the government to get into the business of dictating what kind of health insurance policy we all have to buy.
Your vote-dictatorship or capitalism?