Obamacare’s HealthCare.gov: Crime Scene, Bureaucratic Disaster and Government Failure — Obamacare: Trick, Treat or Tax — Videos
Pronk Pops Show 153: October 21, 2013
Pronk Pops Show 152: October 18, 2013
Pronk Pops Show 151: October 17, 2013
Pronk Pops Show 150: October 16, 2013
Pronk Pops Show 149: October 14, 2013
Pronk Pops Show 148: October 11, 2013
Pronk Pops Show 147: October 10, 2013
Pronk Pops Show 146: October 9, 2013
Pronk Pops Show 145: October 8, 2013
Pronk Pops Show 144: October 7, 2013
Pronk Pops Show 143: October 4 2013
Pronk Pops Show 142: October 3, 2013
Pronk Pops Show 141: October 2, 2013
Pronk Pops Show 140: September 30, 2013
Pronk Pops Show 139: September 27, 2013
Pronk Pops Show 138: September 26, 2013
Pronk Pops Show 137: September 25, 2013
Pronk Pops Show 136: September 24, 2013
Pronk Pops Show 135: September 23, 2013
Pronk Pops Show 134: September 20, 2013
Pronk Pops Show 133: September 19, 2013
Pronk Pops Show 132: September 18, 2013
Pronk Pops Show 131: September 17, 2013
Pronk Pops Show 130: September 16, 2013
Pronk Pops Show 129: September 13, 2013
Pronk Pops Show 128: September 12, 2013
Pronk Pops Show 127: September 11, 2013
Pronk Pops Show 126: September 10, 2013
Pronk Pops Show 125: September 9, 2013
Pronk Pops Show 124: September 6, 2013
Listen To Pronk Pops Podcast or Download Show 151-153
Listen To Pronk Pops Podcast or Download Show 143-150
Listen To Pronk Pops Podcast or Download Show 135-142
Listen To Pronk Pops Podcast or Download Show 131-134
Listen To Pronk Pops Podcast or Download Show 124-130
Listen To Pronk Pops Podcast or Download Shows 121-123
Listen To Pronk Pops Podcast or Download Shows 118-120
Listen To Pronk Pops Podcast or Download Shows 113 -117
Listen To Pronk Pops Podcast or Download Show 112
Listen To Pronk Pops Podcast or Download Shows 108-111
Listen To Pronk Pops Podcast or Download Shows 106-108
Listen To Pronk Pops Podcast or Download Shows 104-105
Listen To Pronk Pops Podcast or Download Shows 101-103
Listen To Pronk Pops Podcast or Download Shows 98-100
Listen To Pronk Pops Podcast or Download Shows 94-97
Listen To Pronk Pops Podcast or Download Shows 93
Listen To Pronk Pops Podcast or Download Shows 92
Listen To Pronk Pops Podcast or Download Shows 91
Listen To Pronk Pops Podcast or Download Shows 88-90
Listen To Pronk Pops Podcast or Download Shows 84-87
Listen To Pronk Pops Podcast or Download Shows 79-83
Listen To Pronk Pops Podcast or Download Shows 74-78
Listen To Pronk Pops Podcast or Download Shows 71-73
Listen To Pronk Pops Podcast or Download Shows 68-70
Listen To Pronk Pops Podcast or Download Shows 65-67
Listen To Pronk Pops Podcast or Download Shows 62-64
Listen To Pronk Pops Podcast or Download Shows 58-61
Listen To Pronk Pops Podcast or Download Shows 55-57
Listen To Pronk Pops Podcast or Download Shows 52-54
Listen To Pronk Pops Podcast or Download Shows 49-51
Listen To Pronk Pops Podcast or Download Shows 45-48
Listen To Pronk Pops Podcast or Download Shows 41-44
Listen To Pronk Pops Podcast or Download Shows 38-40
Listen To Pronk Pops Podcast or Download Shows 34-37
Listen To Pronk Pops Podcast or Download Shows 30-33
Listen To Pronk Pops Podcast or Download Shows 27-29
Listen To Pronk Pops Podcast or Download Shows 17-26
Listen To Pronk Pops Podcast or Download Shows 16-22
Listen To Pronk Pops Podcast or Download Shows 10-15
Listen To Pronk Pops Podcast or Download Shows 01-09
Obamacare: trick, treat or tax?
By Raymond Thomas Pronk
If you think Halloween is scary, you should see the HealthCare.gov website. It is frightening.
When Barack Obama was running for president in 2008, he made a firm pledge to the American people.
“If you who make less than a quarter of a million dollars per year which includes 98 percent of small business owners, you will not see your taxes increase one single dime under my plan — not your payroll taxes, not your income taxes, not your capital gains taxes, nothing. It is time to give the middle class a break. That is what I will do as president of the United States,” Obama said. This was captured in a YouTube video titled “Not a Dime in Tax Increase for Those Earning Less than $250,000.”
Once he was elected, Obama made another promise to the American people.
Obama said, “No matter how we reform healthcare, we will make this promise to the American people; if you like your doctor, you will be able to keep your doctor, period. If you like your healthcare plan, you will be able to keep your healthcare plan, period. No one will take it away, no matter what. My view is that healthcare reform should be guided by a simple principle, fix what is broken and build on what works.” This statement was captured in a YouTube video titled “Obama to AMA keep your doctor and insurance we will build economy.”
On March 23, 2010, Obama signed the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act, commonly referred to as Obamacare. Before Obamacare was enacted into law, Obama was interviewed by ABC News’ George Stephanopoulos. He asked the president, “You were against the individual mandate during the campaign. Under this mandate the government is forcing people to spend money and fining you if you don’t. How is that not a tax?”
Obama said, “… For us to say that you have to take responsibility to get health insurance is absolutely not a tax increase. What it is saying is that we are not going to have other people carrying your burdens for you.”
Stephanopoulos responded, “I do not think I am making it up. Merriam-Webster’s dictionary, tax, a charge usually of money imposed on persons or property for public purposes.”
Obama replied, “George, the fact you looked it up Merriam’s dictionary, that a definition of tax increase, indicates to me that you are stretching it right now.” The entire exchange was captured in the YouTube video titled “Obamacare : FLASHBACK President Obama said Individual Mandate Is Not a Tax (Sept 20, 2009).”
When Obamacare was enacted, 26 states, along with several individuals and others challenged the constitutionality of Obamacare in the courts. They argued that the law was a violation of the Constitution’s Commerce Clause, which gives the federal government the power to regulate commerce between the states. The Supreme Court ruled that the law could not be upheld under the Commerce Clause. This was the primary argument of the government in arguing for the constitutionality of the law. Chief Justice Roberts, writing for the majority said, “The federal government does not have the power to order people to buy health insurance.”
However, the Supreme Court did accept the government’s tax argument that the individual mandate represented a tax on individuals who choose not the buy health insurance. The Court said, “going without insurance” is “just another thing the government taxes, like buying gasoline or earning income.”
Americans are not required to buy health insurance under the individual mandate, according to the Supreme Court in its ruling. However, if you elect not to buy one of Obamacare’s individual metal (bronze, silver, gold or platinum) plans through a state or federal health insurance exchange, you may be subject to a tax penalty or fine by the Internal Revenue Service.
For 2014, the fine is the greater of 1 percent of income or $95 per adult and $47.50 per child up to $285 per family. For 2015 the fine is the greater of 2 percent of income or $325 per adult and $162.50 per child up to $975 per family. For 2016 the fine is the greater of 2.5 percent of income or $695 per adult and $347.50 per child up to $2,085.
Millions of Americans are now finding out from their insurance companies that as a direct result of the passage of Obamacare, they can no longer keep their existing individual plans or doctors. Instead, they have the choice of either purchasing one of the Obamacare metal health insurance plans with much higher premiums and deductibles or pay the IRS fine.
Thanks to Obama the American people believed their taxes would not rise and they could keep their existing health insurance plans and doctors. Obamacare is not a treat, but a trick or tax.
Not a Dime in Tax Increase for Those Earning Less than $250,000
Obama to AMA keep your doctor and insurance we will build economy
“If you like your plan, you can keep your plan.” – Barack Obama
Obamacare : FLASHBACK President Obama said Individual Mandate Is Not a Tax (Sept 20, 2009)
Obamacare, Deconstructed
Think the Affordable Care Act is good for America? Think again.
Oct 14: This just in :People are figuring out just how much “free” health care costs.
http://www.forbes.com/sites/theapothe…
The momentum is on our side.
SOURCES:
1) Jackson & Coker Survey: Physician Opinions of the American Medical Association (2011) http://www.jacksoncoker.com/Promos/in…
Forbes “Doctors and AMA split over Contentious Issue of Obamacare” by Sally Pipes (Sept. 2011) http://www.forbes.com/sites/sallypipe…
2) The New York Times “White Coast in the Rose Garden, as Obama Rallies Doctors on Health Overhaul” by Sheryl Gay Stolberg (Oct. 5, 2009) http://prescriptions.blogs.nytimes.co…
Doctors For America White House Rose Garden Ceremony – Press Release (Oct. 5, 2009) http://www.drsforamerica.org/news-2/p…
3) Congressional Budget Office Report Effects of the Affordable Care Act (March 2010) http://www.cbo.gov/sites/default/file…
4) Congressional Budget Office Report Effects of the Affordable Care Act (May 2013) http://www.cbo.gov/sites/default/file…
5) House Energy & Commerce Committee Report (May 2013) http://energycommerce.house.gov/sites…
6) Gallup Survey of Small Business Owners (May 2013) http://www.gallup.com/poll/162386/hal…
US Chamber of Commerce Small Business Outlook Study (July 2013) http://uschambersmallbusinessnation.c…
7) Supreme Court Decision on the Affordable Care Act http://hastings.house.gov/uploadedfil…
8) US Dept. of HHS Federal Poverty Guidelines (2013) http://aspe.hhs.gov/poverty/13poverty…
House of Representatives’ Committee on Oversight and Government Reform “IRS: Enforcing Obamacare’s New Rules and Taxes” http://oversight.house.gov/wp-content…
9) Washington Examiner “IRS employee union: We don’t want Obamacare” by Joel Gehrke http://washingtonexaminer.com/irs-emp…
10) Kaiser Family Foundation ACA Subsidy Calculator http://kff.org/interactive/subsidy-ca…
11) Office of Personnel and Management – Salaries (April 2013) http://www.opm.gov/policy-data-oversi…
12) Pew Research Center “Baby Boomers Retire” (Dec. 29, 2010) http://www.pewresearch.org/daily-numb…
13) American Association of Medical Colleges “Physician Shortages to Worsen Without Increases In Residency Training” (2010) https://www.aamc.org/download/153160/…
14) American Association of Medical Colleges “Recent Studies and Reports on Physician Shortages in the US” (Oct. 2012) https://www.aamc.org/download/100598/…
15) National Association of Community Health Centers “Access Denied: A Look At America’s Medically Disenfranchised” (2007) http://www.nachc.com/client/documents…
16) American Association of Medical Colleges State Physician Workforce Data Book (2011) https://www.aamc.org/download/263512/…
17) Merritt Hawkins & Associates Survey of Physician Appointment Wait Times (2009) http://www.merritthawkins.com/pdf/mha…
18) Wall Street Journal “The Affordable Care Act’s Rate Setting Won’t Work” by Howard Dean. (July 28, 2013) http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001…
19) Forbes “Unpublished CRS Memo: Obama Administration Has Missed Half Of Obamacare’s Legally Imposed Implementation Deadlines” by Avik Roy http://www.forbes.com/sites/theapothe..
What you don’t know about Obamacare could kill you
Dr. Russell Blaylock on The Nightmare That is Obamacare
If You Like Your Health Care Plan You Can’t Keep It!
Obama: “No sugar-coating” problems with HealthCare.gov
Issues plague Obamacare exchanges
‘Nothing Really Working’: MSNBC Hosts, Analyst Tear Into ‘Catastrophe’ of Obamacare
Zeke Emanuel: ObamaCare Should Have Been Managed Better, Implemented Better From The Start
Obamacare Exchange Failure Special Report All Star Panel Weigh In!
Pres Obama: You Can Keep Your Health Care Plan Under New Law, Period – “Obamacare” – Remember That?
Obamacare : Affordable Care Act rate increase triggers sticker shock for Americans (Oct 14, 2013)
Software engineers blame poor design for Obamacare site problems
Bret Baier If Problems With Obamacare Continue, ‘There Is Going to Have to Be a Delay’
Obama Defends Obamacare, But Says There Is No Excuse For Signup Problems
Problems plague Obamacare rollout
Bill O’Reilly, Kirsten Powers Clash Over Obamacare Problems: ‘This Is Such a Mess!’
The Truth About Obamacare Will Shock You
Blackburn Talks About the Problems with Obamacare
ZoNATION: Pay Attention to Obamacare!
ObamaCare will Hurt the Poorest Americans and Reduce Availability of Quality Care
Four Plans Offered in the Health Insurance Marketplace
Health Care Reform in 2 Minutes
Platinum Plans
Gold Plans
Silver Plans
Bronze Plans
Obamacare In 3 Minutes
eHealth – How Do Obamacare Subsidies Work?
How much are the Obamacare tax penalties?
Understanding Obamacare: Bronze, Silver, Gold, Platinum
How Health Insurance Works
Idiots who voted for Obama
Jon Stewart Grills Health & Human Services SECY Kathleen Sebelius Over Obamacare
Reality Check for HealthCare.gov
Consumer Reports: ‘Stay Away From HealthCare.gov’
Consumer Reports, which publishes reviews of consumer products and services,advised its readers to avoid the federal health-care exchange “for at least another month if you can.” “Hopefully that will be long enough for its software vendors to clean up the mess they’ve made,” the magazine said, having tested the site themselves over the course of the past three weeks.
Noting that only 271,000 of the 9.47 million people who tried signing up in the first week managed to create an account, Consumer Reports then provided a few tips to those attempting to slog through the application process. From attempting successive logins because “error messages . . . may not always match reality” to checking one’s inbox frequently because missing an e-mail a user will be timed out of the site and forced to start from square one, none of the suggestions guaranteed success.
The magazine has also released a string of scathing reviews. On October 1, the day the Obamacare exchanges went online, the magazine told people to be patient: “Don’t worry if you can’t sign up today or even within the next couple of weeks.” A week into enrollment, they urged again to “wait a couple weeks and hope that the site irons out its many problems” because the HealthCare.gov is “barely operational.”
As the editors continued to review the website over the next few days, they only had one positive statement: “On the plus side,” they noted, “consumers coming to HealthCare.gov are no longer stopped cold by an error message or a screen saying they’ve been put in a waiting line.”
Now three weeks into the exchanges, having offered reviews and advice, Consumer Reports said that “if all [these suggestions] are too much to absorb, follow our previous advice: Stay away from Healthcare.gov,” at least for the time being.
http://www.nationalreview.com/corner/361750/consumer-reports-stay-away-healthcaregov-alec-torres
Read Full Post | Make a Comment ( None so far )
Pronk Palisades 
You must be logged in to post a comment.