Healthcare Mythbusters (August, 2009)

I'll start by saying that I do believe our current health care system needs reform; specifically, the rules governing health insurance and the link between personal behavior and cost. I strongly think that we are on the wrong path and headed for disaster with the current health care bill proposed by Congress. After reading the first article, you now know a little bit more about this bill, so let's take a look at some of the statements the media and political "talking heads" have been feeding us.

"Over 45 million Americans lack health insurance." This statistic has been cited in many sources over the past few years, including political speeches by Hilary Clinton and President Obama. While this statistic comes from an annual report by the Census Bureau, it is misleading and misunderstood. When you take a closer look at this figure, nearly 10 million of this number are not U.S. citizens. Of the remaining 35 million, more than 17 million make over $50,000 a year, with half of those making $75,000 or more. These people could afford insurance, but choose not to pay for it. About 9 million of the uninsured already qualify for government health insurance programs, but haven't bothered to take the time to enroll. This leaves about 8 million U.S. citizens actually uninsured for reasons out of their control. It is clear that those pushing for a major government intervention in health care have been distorting this 45-million statistic to boost their cause. Why should we uproot our entire system that is functioning for 97% of the American people to benefit 3%?

"Nobody is talking about cutting Medicare benefits." Medicare is already projected to run out of money by 2020. The House bill proposes to reduce projected increases in Medicare payments to providers by more than 500 billion over the next 10 years. This will happen as baby boomers turn 65 and increase Medicare enrollment by 30%. With less money and more patients, the only option will be rationing care. According to the Congressional Budget Office, only an estimated 1% of the cuts will come from eliminating fraud, waste and abuse, leaving 99% for cutting access to care. An advisory committee will be appointed to recommend a benefits package based on standards set in the law. In addition, the bill specifically states that the government plans to eliminate some Medicare Advantage plans as a cost saving measure. 22% of all Medicare patients are currently enrolled in Medicare Advantage plans which allow seniors to buy supplemental Medicare coverage through private insurance companies. President Obama has called Medicare Advantage a wasteful subsidy for the health insurance industry and he has even proposed eliminating the entire program.

"The health care reform will not increase the federal deficit." On June 16th, the Congressional Budget Office determined that the health care reform bill proposed would cost 1.6 trillion over 10 years. This figure took many people aback, including some of Mr. Obama's fellow democrats. The White House quickly responded with a proposal for Medicare cuts. In response to this proposal, the CBO projected that we would possibly see 2 billion in savings in the second decade, a number that pales in comparison to the cost. Supporters of the reform have said that while it will increase costs and deficits in the first decade, it will make up for them in the long run, a process President Obama refers to as "bending the curve downward in coming decades." Last week, the CBO delivered another devastating blow when it stated that it does not believe current bill bends spending down. In fact, they estimate that annual growth in outlays will be 8% while annual growth in revenues will be 5%. Simple math tells us that the deficit will increase.

"Tax increases will only affect the very wealthy." President Obama has vowed to implement this health care plan without raising taxes on the middle class. Just this week, both Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner and economic adviser Larry Summers stated that they cannot rule out higher taxes on the middle class as part of the health care overhaul. From his presidential campaign up until now, Mr. Obama has vowed to only increase taxes on those making over $250,000. Most people in this country don't realize that a tax increase on the wealthy will affect them negatively. If the government raises taxes on high income individuals, experience shows that an increase from 35-45% would change the behavior of these individuals in ways that lower their taxable income, shifting the tax increases burden to the middle class. Also, many of these "wealthy" individuals are business owners. With an increase in taxes, they will be forced to raise prices, cut jobs, and lower pay, all of which harm everyone. With income taxes aside, President Obama has already broken his pledge not to increase taxes on the middle class by increasing the federal excise tax on cigarettes and by backing the cap and trade legislation which equates to an energy tax on every person in America.

"If you like your current insurance, nothing changes except your costs will go down by as much as $2,500 per year." Rachel touched on the idea that the government can't fairly compete with other insurers. How will the Humana's of the world lower their premiums while hospitals charge them more to compensate for lower government reimbursements? How will an employer be able to walk away from the government's offer if the premiums are artificially lower than what he currently pays to privately insure his employees? As employees lose their jobs and are forced to use the public option, illegal aliens are automatically covered, and the average consumer is forced into the public option by rising prices, we will soon all be covered under one big federally run health care plan with costs out of control and life altering decisions made by the government. Back in August of last year when Mr. Obama was campaigning, he said, "If I were designing a system from scratch, I would probably go ahead with a single payer system." All this talk of a public option among the private insurance plans is just paving the way for a single payer system in the future.

In conclusion, I'm slightly optimistic that Congress has delayed the vote on the bill until after summer recess. Hopefully during these next few weeks, we the public will continue voicing our dismay with the current bill and prove to Congress once and for all that there is no place in the United Sates for socialized health care.