Jobs, Coverage Lost Under ObamaCare Say Two New Reports
Two new reports show tough times ahead for American workers as ObamaCare comes closer and closer to fruition.
Business consulting firm Deloitte surveyed employers with 50+ employees who are currently offering their employees health care.
They found one in ten are planning to stop offering health care to their employees as a result of ObamaCare. In addition, the survey found one in three would consider dropping benefits if ObamaCare forces them to pay for more extensive coverage then they do now, if the tax on so-called "Cadillac" health plans goes into effect or if the tax for not offering health care would be far less than the premiums they now pay.
The Deloitte survey found a huge divide between large and small businesses. Only 2% of businesses with 1,000 or more employees are considering dropping health care coverage, while 13% of businesses with between 50 and 100 employees said they were planning to drop coverage.
Even for those who will retain health care coverage, the Deloitte survey contains some bad news. About three-fourths of employers contacted said they either have or would be increasing their employees' contribution to health care coverage.
John Goodman (pictured), President and CEO of the National Center for Policy Analysis, delivers more bad news for American workers with his testimony to Congress entitled, The Impact of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act on Job Creators and the Economy.
Goodman starts out by breaking down the cost of the health care mandate for every worker. Citing Congressional Budget Office figures, the average annual cost of a minimum benefit package will be between $4,500 and $5,000 for individuals and $12,000 to $12,500 for a family plan.
This translates to roughly $2.28 an hour for full-time individual workers and $5.89 an hour for family coverage.
By next year, the minimum cost of labor for a worker with family insurance coverage will be will be a $7.25 cash minimum wage and a $5.89 health minimum wage (family), for a total of $13.14 an hour or about $27,331 a year.
Goodman sums up the problem with the ObamaCare mandate:
Goodman cites an example of a 55 year old head of a family of four in a high cost region whose health care will cost $23,700 a year. ObamaCare caps premiums at 9.5% of income for families that earn 350-400% above the poverty line, so the family would actually pay $8,901 -- resulting in a subsidy of $14,700.
However, should the family earn just $1 more than $93,699 threshold for the subsidy cap, the family would then be on the hook for the whole $23,700 a year. In effect, that $1 of income would be taxed at a marginal rate of 1.47 MILLION percent!
Employers will game the new system as well. Employers with 51 or more workers must pay a $2,000 penalty for not covering workers with an approved health care insurance package. So, if a business grows from 50 to 51 employees without adding coverage, it would be a $42,000 annual tax.
Employers could avoid this tax by simply turning 20 of their 51 workers into part-time employees. This would reduce the fine from $42,000 to $2,000, while 20 workers who want to work full-time would be reduced to part-time employment.
Experience has shown, when workers and employers make business decisions based on government mandates rather than what's best for consumers, everyone suffers.
The previous What's Happening with Seniors Benefits: How the IRS is 'Fixing' a Big Mistake in ObamaCare
Business consulting firm Deloitte surveyed employers with 50+ employees who are currently offering their employees health care.
They found one in ten are planning to stop offering health care to their employees as a result of ObamaCare. In addition, the survey found one in three would consider dropping benefits if ObamaCare forces them to pay for more extensive coverage then they do now, if the tax on so-called "Cadillac" health plans goes into effect or if the tax for not offering health care would be far less than the premiums they now pay.
The Deloitte survey found a huge divide between large and small businesses. Only 2% of businesses with 1,000 or more employees are considering dropping health care coverage, while 13% of businesses with between 50 and 100 employees said they were planning to drop coverage.
Even for those who will retain health care coverage, the Deloitte survey contains some bad news. About three-fourths of employers contacted said they either have or would be increasing their employees' contribution to health care coverage.
John Goodman (pictured), President and CEO of the National Center for Policy Analysis, delivers more bad news for American workers with his testimony to Congress entitled, The Impact of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act on Job Creators and the Economy.Goodman starts out by breaking down the cost of the health care mandate for every worker. Citing Congressional Budget Office figures, the average annual cost of a minimum benefit package will be between $4,500 and $5,000 for individuals and $12,000 to $12,500 for a family plan.
This translates to roughly $2.28 an hour for full-time individual workers and $5.89 an hour for family coverage.
By next year, the minimum cost of labor for a worker with family insurance coverage will be will be a $7.25 cash minimum wage and a $5.89 health minimum wage (family), for a total of $13.14 an hour or about $27,331 a year.
Goodman sums up the problem with the ObamaCare mandate:
For above-average-wage employees, expect wage stagnation over the foreseeable future, as employers use potential wage increases to pay for expanded (and mandated) health benefits instead. At the low end of the wage scale, however, the effects of this new law are going to be devastating.Goodman also finds several other ways the complicated ObamaCare regime will result in potential disasters for workers and employers.
Ten-dollar-an-hour workers and their employers cannot afford $6-an-hour health insurance. If they bought it, only $4 would be left for cash wages and that would violate the (cash) minimum wage law. This is not a small problem. One-third of uninsured workers earn less than $3 above the minimum wage.
Goodman cites an example of a 55 year old head of a family of four in a high cost region whose health care will cost $23,700 a year. ObamaCare caps premiums at 9.5% of income for families that earn 350-400% above the poverty line, so the family would actually pay $8,901 -- resulting in a subsidy of $14,700.
However, should the family earn just $1 more than $93,699 threshold for the subsidy cap, the family would then be on the hook for the whole $23,700 a year. In effect, that $1 of income would be taxed at a marginal rate of 1.47 MILLION percent!
Employers will game the new system as well. Employers with 51 or more workers must pay a $2,000 penalty for not covering workers with an approved health care insurance package. So, if a business grows from 50 to 51 employees without adding coverage, it would be a $42,000 annual tax.
Employers could avoid this tax by simply turning 20 of their 51 workers into part-time employees. This would reduce the fine from $42,000 to $2,000, while 20 workers who want to work full-time would be reduced to part-time employment.
Experience has shown, when workers and employers make business decisions based on government mandates rather than what's best for consumers, everyone suffers.
The previous What's Happening with Seniors Benefits: How the IRS is 'Fixing' a Big Mistake in ObamaCare
Voters Support ObamaCare Repeal AND MORE
Most Voters Support ObamaCare Repeal
A new poll by Rasmussen Reports shows 55% of likely voters voice support for repeal of ObamaCare. Support for repeal of ObamaCare has remained above 50%, even after the recent Supreme Court decision.
Of those supporting repeal, a significant 41% strongly support it while only 30% remain strongly opposed to repeal.
A major change in public opinion regarding Obama's signature health care law since the Supreme Court ruling has been among voters who believe they will be forced to change their current health care insurance under the new law.
From a low of 31% earlier this month, the number of likely voters who believe ObamaCare will facilitate a need to change their health care insurance has risen to 40%. Losing current health care insurance options could be a key driver of opinion on ObamaCare, since 77% of those polled with current insurance rated their current plan as excellent or good.
Despite the fact it has been over two years since ObamaCare was first enacted, half of the likely voters polled believe ObamaCare will be bad for the country.
Obamacare remains one of the top issues in the minds of likely voters with 67% rating health care as a very important issue -- second only to the economy. Voters are evenly split between Romney and Obama when it comes to trust on the health care insurance issue.
Rasmussen has also found a wide majority of the electorate believes a Romney victory means ObamaCare will be repealed.
80% of likely voters polled believe ObamaCare will likely be repealed in the event of a Romney victory. This number is stable across conservatives, moderates and liberals.
Federal Court Deals Defeat to ObamaCare's Anti-Religious Mandate
Judge John L. Kane (pictured), a federal judge in the Denver area and a Carter appointee, gave a temporary injunction to Hercules Industries, allowing their case against the anti-religious conscience mandate in ObamaCare to continue.
Hercules Industries is family-owned and has its own self-insured health care plan for its 265 employees. Because of the owners' religious beliefs, their health plan does not cover abortion-inducing drugs, sterilization, and contraception.
Under the terms of ObamaCare and its mandates, unless Hercules offered these services by November 1st, they would be subject to crippling fines.
While the judge did not rule on the merits of the case, he did allow the temporary injunctive relief because the possible damage from ObamaCare's mandate "pales in comparison to the possible infringement upon Plaintiffs' constitutional and statutory rights."
The judge also found Hercules had a sufficiently compelling case to warrant blocking immediate enforcement of the ObamaCare contraceptive mandate and allow for the full vetting of the mandate through federal court.
By Kirk Raymond
A new poll by Rasmussen Reports shows 55% of likely voters voice support for repeal of ObamaCare. Support for repeal of ObamaCare has remained above 50%, even after the recent Supreme Court decision.
Of those supporting repeal, a significant 41% strongly support it while only 30% remain strongly opposed to repeal.
A major change in public opinion regarding Obama's signature health care law since the Supreme Court ruling has been among voters who believe they will be forced to change their current health care insurance under the new law.
From a low of 31% earlier this month, the number of likely voters who believe ObamaCare will facilitate a need to change their health care insurance has risen to 40%. Losing current health care insurance options could be a key driver of opinion on ObamaCare, since 77% of those polled with current insurance rated their current plan as excellent or good.
Despite the fact it has been over two years since ObamaCare was first enacted, half of the likely voters polled believe ObamaCare will be bad for the country.
Obamacare remains one of the top issues in the minds of likely voters with 67% rating health care as a very important issue -- second only to the economy. Voters are evenly split between Romney and Obama when it comes to trust on the health care insurance issue.
Rasmussen has also found a wide majority of the electorate believes a Romney victory means ObamaCare will be repealed.
80% of likely voters polled believe ObamaCare will likely be repealed in the event of a Romney victory. This number is stable across conservatives, moderates and liberals.
Federal Court Deals Defeat to ObamaCare's Anti-Religious Mandate
Judge John L. Kane (pictured), a federal judge in the Denver area and a Carter appointee, gave a temporary injunction to Hercules Industries, allowing their case against the anti-religious conscience mandate in ObamaCare to continue.Hercules Industries is family-owned and has its own self-insured health care plan for its 265 employees. Because of the owners' religious beliefs, their health plan does not cover abortion-inducing drugs, sterilization, and contraception.
Under the terms of ObamaCare and its mandates, unless Hercules offered these services by November 1st, they would be subject to crippling fines.
While the judge did not rule on the merits of the case, he did allow the temporary injunctive relief because the possible damage from ObamaCare's mandate "pales in comparison to the possible infringement upon Plaintiffs' constitutional and statutory rights."
The judge also found Hercules had a sufficiently compelling case to warrant blocking immediate enforcement of the ObamaCare contraceptive mandate and allow for the full vetting of the mandate through federal court.
By Kirk Raymond
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