Health-care bill will cost everyone a lot of money

Published 8:25 am Friday, August 27, 2010

To the Editor:

I read with great amusement the article by Tim Kaine, the chairman of the Democratic National Committee (“Democrats deliver on decades-old promise,” Wednesday, Aug. 25), so let’s set the record straight.

This great health-care bill will cost the state of Virginia $1.3 billion to $1.7 billion a year if implemented. Hopefully our Attorney General Ken Cuccinelli will be able to demonstrate how unconstitutional this action is by the federal government, and if not, then hopefully the other 20-odd states suing the government over this health care bill will prevail.

What Tim Kaine and the Democrats do not tell you about this health-care bill are some of the following:

• Effective 2013, there will be a 3.8 percent federal tax on the gross selling amount of one’s house that goes directly to the U.S. government to help pay for the bill.

• The house will have to be certified “green,” which will hurt our elderly citizens as their homes will have to be brought up to future energy standards, have the energy efficient windows and such, and guess who gets to pay? The elderly, and there will be government inspectors who tell you if you are in compliance — another government agency in the making for us to pay for.

• You had better have some qualified health-care plan in the near future, or you will be fined to the tune of a couple of thousands of dollars a year.

• Small-business people who generate 75 percent of our jobs will have to submit a new Form 1099 on all services/purchases over $600, now which the U.S. government says will “only add $300 more per year to small businesses’ expenses” — try more like $3,000 to $6,000 per year more.

• Whatever the value of your health-care plan currently is, your employer will now add that amount onto your gross federal income at the end of the year and will show up in your individual W2 form. Will the states now tax you on your new gross federal income too?

I cannot wait to see Americans’ reaction to that part of the bill when their gross federal income is adjusted upwards by $5,000 to $30,000 plus per individual because of the Democrats’ health care plan.

The Congressional Budget Office has validated all these amounts, but remember this about the CBO. Before the vote on the Democrats’ health-care plan, the CBO said it would only cost $700 billion; then after the vote, it jumped to $800 billion plus and is still climbing.

But our President, Mr. Obama, and the Democrats have stated on numerous occasions that this health-care plan won’t raise our taxes — interesting. The above are just a few of the items buried in the Democrats’ health care bill.

So let me understand this; the Democrats’ national health care will dictate that the individual and small businessperson will pay for it, so the 47 percent of the U.S. population who do not pay any state or federal taxes will be very happy.

I assume that the 53 percent of the U.S. population, who pay taxes, will be happy about the Democrats’ health-care plan for all, and I hope the elderly will understand why over $500 million a year from Medicare was cut from that fund to help “pay” for the Democrats’ health-care plan.

I am beginning to believe that I have retired to the Soviet Union, and we all know what happened to the Soviet Union: total bankruptcy and demise.

Lt. Col. Richard G Vaught

U.S. Air Force Retired

Windsor