2016 Postmortem
Related: About this forumA real issue of implementing single payer
that isn't often discussed. Many of us have our insurance costs substantially paid by our employers (in my case I get all but a very small fraction of my insurance paid that way). In Vermont, the single payer system would have increased personal income taxes by a flat 9.5 percent (person paying 6 percent now pays 15.5 percent after). For me that would be an over 5000 dollar tax increase for an expense largely covered by my employer. And most employers wouldn't be passing that savings on to us since they write off the expense themselves and their taxes would also increase by 11.5 percent. I know the NC General Assembly would be using their savings to fund further tax cuts not increase teacher pay. Until you divorce insurance from employment much of the savings from single payer will redound to employers while the costs will redound to employees.
PoliticAverse
(26,366 posts)more. A related issue with the Vermont plan was many companies employ workers that commute from out of state
and provide health insurance for them, the Vermont plan would have created certain problems for those companies.
dsc
(52,163 posts)FreakinDJ
(17,644 posts)And my coverage became more restrictive
The bar was set too low
PoliticAverse
(26,366 posts)the penalty for not having insurance was set too low to force enough healthy people to
sign-up and increase the pool covering the new unhealthy people getting insurance.
liberal_at_heart
(12,081 posts)she does.
FreakinDJ
(17,644 posts)The ACA was thoroughly colluded by the Healthcare Industry
The only thing it did was creat a Win-fall for stockholders
LWolf
(46,179 posts)https://berniesanders.com/medicare-for-all/
Bernie is on board with HR 676:
The three Congressional leaders on Medicare for All health care sent an open letter calling on Americans to build on the momentum created by debate and passage of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act to make Medicare for All a reality. They also renewed the call for states to take the lead on passing Medicare for All legislation.
http://conyers.house.gov/index.cfm/press-releases?ID=243c7e06-19b9-b4b1-12fa-20c29b6101af
HR 676 addresses your concern:
In 2006, health insurers charged employers an average of $11,500 for a health plan for a family of four. On average, the employer paid 74% of this premium, or $8,510 per year. This figure does not include the additional 1.45% payroll tax levied on employers for Medicare. Under H.R. 676, employers would pay a 4.75% payroll tax for all health care costs. For an employee making the median family income of $56,200 per year, the employer would pay about $2,700.
http://conyers.house.gov/index.cfm/healthcare
liberal_at_heart
(12,081 posts)physical problems(turns out it was either physical symptoms of depression or panic attacks because of the stress of the situation) after my husband had a heart attack. He has Medicare and we have a private insurance plan for him, so he is double covered. I have a private plan but no Medicare, and now I just got a bill for $4000. I can't afford that. I plan on sending them like $20 a month. They can either take it or leave it. I hate our for profit health care. We must have something better.
yeoman6987
(14,449 posts)Horrible. Yes paying it is a pain but I predict the service received was in the 10s of thousands at least.
Glad both of you are better.
liberal_at_heart
(12,081 posts)faint. They couldn't find anything wrong with me. Then I started having chest pain, stomach pain, headaches. I ended up going to the ER a few times because I was scared. I didn't know what was wrong with me. Eventually they told me I was probably having physical symptoms of depression. After that I stopped going to the ER and just slept for about a week. I think it was just all the stress of my husband having a heart attack, but I was scared. My husband had just had a heart attack, and I was afraid I might be having a heart attack too. I didn't know what was wrong with me. My husband has Medicare and we also have a secondary private insurance plan for him. We haven't received any bills for his heart attack. I also have a private insurance plan but no Medicare, so I get stuck with a $4000 bill.
dsc
(52,163 posts)but they likely won't pass that savings on to us.
LWolf
(46,179 posts)Currently, the average family of four covered under an employee health plan spends a total of $4,225 on health care annually $2,713 on premiums and another $1,522 on medical services, drugs and supplies (Employer Health Benefits 2006 Annual Survey, Kaiser Family Foundation and Health Research and Educational Trust; U.S. Department of Labor, Bureau of Labor Statistics, Consumer Expenditure Survey.) This figure does not include the additional 1.45% Medicare payroll tax levied on employees. A study by Dean Baker of the Center for Economic Research and Policy concluded that under H.R. 676, a family of four making the median family income of $56,200 per year would pay about $2,700 for all health care costs.
http://conyers.house.gov/index.cfm/healthcare
Response to LWolf (Reply #9)
liberal_at_heart This message was self-deleted by its author.
dsc
(52,163 posts)but pay 5k in taxes. A somewhat better deal but not exactly a great one.
TexasProgresive
(12,157 posts)I paid $1800 per annum while the company was paying $14,000 per annum. If there were single payer from your figures it would have been a savings totaling about $11,000. This is the heart of the matter, too much money is being drawn off from individuals and companies into health insurance companies and the medical industrial complex.
A RWNJ former co-worker of mine said that Canadian docs were coming to the U.S. to make more money then they could in Canada. I don't know if that is true, but I replied if they got the same level of good pay in the U.S. that they receive in Canada they would stay put unless they liked the weather better in Florida.