Obamacare: You Ain't Seen Nothing Yet

Obamacare will impact jobs and our economy in negative ways.  The Congressional Budget Office (CBO) report, recently released, shows just how much it will impact.  No matter the economic viewpoint held, it becomes clear that this legislation will devastate the American family and our economy.  Whether one believes that economic growth spurs from consumers keeping money in their pockets or lower spending of the government, both are losers in this case.  

Furthermore, the CBO report only looks at the impact of Obamacare on the budget.  It does not account for shortfalls or further reaching effects on our budgeting and economic outlook.  In other words, it does not weigh the impact on our already failing systems of Medicare, Disability or any of the Social Security programs that already struggle.  The biggest of these impacts is Medicare.

Medicare Impact and Result

Medicare enrollment is projected to increase from 34 Million (pre-ACA) to 47 Million by 2023.  This represents a 38% increase in enrollment.  This increase represents a cost of $710,000,000,000 over this same period, if funded by increased taxes.  As of 2013, Medicare (HI) was projected to be depleted by 2026.  It is unclear whether or not the increase in Medicare enrollment was accounted in the Trustee's Annual Report of 2013.  However, it is clear that the Trustee's use a baseline of the current year for their calculations.  With the increases in Medicare enrollee's hitting hardest in 2014, it is likely we will see ugly numbers come 2015.

KEY DATES FOR THE TRUST FUNDS

	OASI	DI	OASDI	HI
Year of peak trust fund ratioa	2011	2003	2008	2003
First year outgo exceeds income excluding interestb	2010	2005	2010	2018
First year outgo exceeds income including interestb	2022	2009	2021	2021
Year trust funds are depleted	2035	2016	2033	2026

Employer Based Insurance

11,000,000 people will lose their employer based insurance by 2019, according to the CBO.  However, it is believed that 4,000,000 of these individuals will obtain coverage through the exchanges.  By 2023, the average subsidy will reach $7,900 per individual.  

What happens to the other 7 Million people who will lose their employer based insurance?  It is believed that these people will fall into one of two categories; Medicare or uninsured.  

The Net Effects

The CBO report offers more insight into what they believe will be occurring over the next few years.  The net effects are hard to predict, due to the size and scope of this legislation.  Throughout the report, assumptions are made in order to measure the effects in a statistical analysis.  

• It is projected that the non-elderly uninsured will decrease from 55,000,000 to 31,000,000 by 2016.  This still leaves a lot of people uninsured, which was the point of this legislation. According to the report, only 2-3% of these individuals are illegal immigrants.  One finds it hard to believe there are only this many illegal immigrants, or we can conclude that they are being covered by Obamacare.  
• Costs will grow astronomically from 2014 through 2023.  While the total impact on the deficit is $49,000,000,000 in 2014, it grows to $170,000,000,000 by 2023.  This is in addition to our already burdensome $17,500,000,000,000 deficit we currently have at this time.
• Costs extend beyond the deficit; they also impact individuals and families.  All spending is taxation, and therefore, the true impact of the legislation can also be measured in the total cost on Americans.  Table 2 shows more than the impact on the deficit, it also measures the overall net effect on Americans.  In order to do this, we must add the gross cost of the coverage, plus all the taxes and penalties incurred on the people, directly and indirectly.  By 2023, (assuming our population grows to 320 Million) the cost to Americans will be $520,000,000,000 per year or $1,625 per individual per year!  This means, the average family of 4 will be impacted with an additional tax bill of $6,500 per year.  Keep in mind, this is Obamacare only; it does not include the other spending we are currently doing as a country.  

If individuals (320 million of them) have $1,625 less to spend each year, is it not hard to believe that our economy will tank?  If the government spends more than it takes in already, then we add an additional $1.4 Trillion over the next 10 years, won't it paralyze us?  

Furthermore, we still do not know the net impact of health care costs on individuals and families under this plan.  Both sides continue to cherry pick stories of horror and success, but what is the net effect?  It is not surprising that there are winners and losers under this legislation; that is how government intervention works.  This net effect on premiums, etc. will not be known until the law is fully implemented, which is a moving target.  

As is widely known, this legislation is political in nature.  Is it any wonder that the implementation was initially scheduled for 2014 (before mid term elections), but has now been delayed for its' highest impact in 2016?  And, as shown by the information passed along by the CBO, the strongest impact is the implementation of the employer mandate.  This has been repeatedly delayed and is now slated for 2015.  

Liberal Lies: Choice

Liberals claim to be the party that promotes choice, yet we do not see choices in Liberalism.  Choices are limited to the "approved" remedy of the bureaucracy and belief systems in Liberalism.  Choice implies freedom, yet, Liberalism always destroys freedom and choice.

As an aside, I now realize how odd the word choice looks when typing it repeatedly.  That is my random thought for the day!

Pro-Choice

Liberals consistently talk about the greatness of being pro-choice. After all, it is the mother's choice that matters, not the unborn child, right?

Let me ask this, what is more important in our society; a mother's choice or the right to life?  A mother's choice is nothing more than a decision to be made with horrific consequences, in this case.  God endowed us with the ability to procreate and our right to life.  We protect life on earth as being sacred in many ways; we even protect the rights of animals through cruelty legislation, etc.  Yet, how is an unborn child (a human nonetheless) less protected in the pro-choice argument?   

“No woman can call herself free until she can choose consciously whether she will or will not be a mother.”
― Margaret Sanger

The choice has been made prior to the point of choosing whether or not to be a mother.  The choice was made when a person decides to have sex with a partner.  That was when the freedom of choice occurs, not after the fact.

“The so-called right to abortion has pitted mothers against their children and women against men. It has sown violence and discord at the heart of the most intimate human relationships. It has aggravated the derogation of the father's role in an increasingly fatherless society. It has portrayed the greatest of gifts--a child--as a competitor, an intrusion and an inconvenience. It has nominally accorded mothers unfettered dominion over the dependent lives of their physically dependent sons and daughters. And, in granting this unconscionable power, it has exposed many women to unjust and selfish demands from their husbands or other sexual partners.”
― Mother Teresa

Where is the choice of that unborn child?  Liberals also claim to be the protectors of the weak, poor, and innocent children (but, only if they are born first).  The hypocrisy of this position is scathing and yet, no liberal will actually admit to the choice that was already made.

At least Liberalism gave one choice, the choice of birth control.....

Healthcare Choices

The Affordable Care and Patient Act (aka Obamacare) did not increase choice, it limited it.

Many young adults used to choose whether or not to carry health insurance.  This decision was made based upon their finances and other factors.  Yet, with the passing of Obamacare, they no longer have this choice.  This freedom has been stripped away in one fellow swoop of the pen by our Liberal leadership and Liberals in Congress.

Undoubtedly, our choices in insurance plans have also been limited.  Why? You might ask.  Insurance companies are not stupid; they will offer plans that conform to the requirements (no choice) of Obamacare in minimal terms to limit the cost to consumers.  You see, economically speaking, insurance companies want to earn our business by keeping rates as low as possible.  The only way to keep rates low for the healthy is to limit what is covered, especially when other stuff is unnecessary.  Men are going to be forced to pay for ob/gyn appointments and women to pay for prostate exams under this bill.  This is a requirement, not a choice.

"If you like your plan, you can keep it. Period." - President Obama

Sounded like a great choice.  Again, proven profoundly wrong.  No discussion needed and end of story.

At least we get to choose our doctor, right?  Again, no.  Our choice of doctor may or may not be available through Obamacare.

Yes, the choice has been made to not expand this section any further.  You see, this is my choice and I am making it.  To put it bluntly, there are few freedoms in Obamacare and therefore no choices.  I am certain that I could write a 2700+ page book on Obamacare, but this is not the place for it.

Religious Choice

Ah, the Phil Robertson section....yes, it is my choice.  But, it goes further than the recent explosion between Phil Robertson, A&E and the Liberal choosers.

One of the core foundations of our country is the Freedom of Religion.  This infers the right to choose a religion and follow its practices as well.

John Adams Letter to Benjamin Rush Date: 1812

"Nothing is more dreaded than the national government meddling with religion."

Liberalism, through Obamacare, attempted to squash religious choice in implementing the law.  Catholics, who do not allow contraception in practice, were forced to provide birth control through their insurance plans.  Religious institutions appealed this requirement and were told it was a requirement, not a choice.  Thankfully, appeals to this requirement are slowly being upheld by the courts and should be overturning the requirement in time.  Nonetheless, it was an attempt by Liberals to destroy religious freedom and the practice thereof.

It is not just Catholics under attack.  Christians are regularly the targets of Liberal outcries for religious oppression.  Phil Robertson was attacked for his Christian view on gay marriage by the left.  It was A&E's decision to suspend him and that was their choice, which is not the argument here.  However, the fact that GLAAD (a LIBERAL group) would demand he be silenced is the attack on religious freedom.

In reality, all religious denominations have been under attack by some form of Liberalism in our country.  The examples, again, are so numerous that a book could be written.  Muslims, Islamists, etc. it doesn't matter; they are all being attacked by the Liberals.  Conservatives do not care what your religion is, you have every right to practice it, preach it, and show it.

The only "religions" that seem to be omitted from these attacks are Atheists and Climate Change worshipers.  Of course, they tend to be almost exclusively Liberals, so that explains a lot.

Economic Choice

Financial choices should be up to an individual or family.  Liberals force many things to not be choices when it comes to economics. Again, only the tip of the iceberg will be hit upon.

Individuals used to have the choice to spend their money on healthcare.  As aforementioned above, this choice has been retracted by Obamacare.

Taxes are government force, not a choice.  By forcing the top 40% to pay 106.9% of the tax burden (discussed in The Welfare State: Increasing Government Dependency), this economic choice has been removed.  Liberals are for a highly progressive tax code which steals from the "rich" and gives to the poor.

From the obscene to the absurd;

Once January 1st hits, it will officially be illegal to manufacture or import traditional incandescent light bulbs in the United States.  It is being projected that millions of Americans will attempt to stock up on the old light bulbs before they are totally gone from store shelves.

Nope, you don't have a choice to buy the lightbulb you want either.

Education Choice

Liberals are ALL about government control and NO freedom when it comes to school choice.  If you can not afford a way out, you are stuck with public schools.  Public schools are failing on the education front in so many ways, they are too numerous to list here.

Educational choices have been repeatedly proposed, yet they are shot down by Liberals.  Whether it is a voucher system, tax credits, or other means of allowing school choice, Liberals flatly oppose them.  Yet, we are continually falling behind the rest of the world in education.

Charity Choice

The Liberal "charity" continues to be our government.  Again, forcing people to pay taxes into a charity of Liberal persuasion does not allow for choice.  People have the right to do with their property (money) as they choose.  This choice should include giving to the charities of their liking.  This is not to mention, government is inefficient in actually helping the intended recipients.  Private charity is MUCH more efficient in helping those in need.  The split is astounding; 70% of private charity reaches the intended recipient while government only sends 30%.

Speech Choice (Freedom of Speech)

This is so obvious to me that it needs little said about it.  Here is the gist: Liberals do not believe in freedom of speech unless it supports their position.  They seek to silence any opposition to their worldview and attempt to do so every day.

For more information please read my friend's exceptional piece, showing how absurd this has gotten: Liberals Are Now The Freedom Of Speech Police.

My choice to conclude

While Liberals will argue that they offer choice in other arenas, one has the right not to choose those topics.  Granted, there are so many choices on the limiting of choices by Liberals, it is astounding.  To say the choices are endless (until my speech is censored) is an understatement.  All in all, it is a lie to claim to be Liberal and pro-"choice".