Senator Carnahan, Jan Polizzi Fired Up About McCain's Radical Health Care Plan

Jean Carnahan and Jan Polizzi joined health policy expert Peter Harbage to highlight a new report released today by the Center for American Progress Action Fund that shows that Senator John McCain’s proposed health care plan would threaten the employer-based health benefits of 3.2 million people in Missouri and that as many as 400,000 Missourians could lose their health coverage.  These findings, confirmed by the Economic Policy Institute, were compounded by the fact that the McCain health care plan would amount to a tax increase for middle class families in Missouri, with the average family paying almost $540 more in taxes by 2013.  In Missouri, Sen. McCain’s plan would:­
•    Threaten the coverage of 3.2 million people in Missouri receive health benefits through work. The Economic Policy Institute projects 400,000 could lose their coverage. McCain’s plan eliminates the employer health care tax benefits that enable many businesses, especially small businesses, to provide group insurance to their employees.
•    Put at special risk coverage for the 1.1 million non-elderly people in Missouri struggling with diseases like cancer and diabetes who are now covered through their jobs. Under McCain’s plan, insurance companies would be free to “cherry pick” only those individuals for coverage who do not have costly health conditions and avoid state regulations that keep health care accessible and affordable.
•    Raise taxes on the health insurance benefits paid by millions of Missouri families. A typical Missouri family could pay almost $540 more in taxes by 2013 if McCain imposes both income and payroll taxes on their health coverage.
  That's not the change we need.

Mr.Schultz

After watching the Vice Presidential Debates last night, I don't have to read the tax plan you refer to regarding McCain/Falin's healthcare policy.

Palin proved she was a complete airhead last night.  She only had canned answer to her own questions, rambling aimlessly on many subjects, and covering none well.

McCain/Falin do not have a single policy that will help the middle class american worker.  Record high deficits and they want to pay for them all with a tax cut for the wealthy and the oil companies.

I have seen the Republicans fancy footwork and heard all their lies in 65 years of my time, and they haven't changed from day one.

Now Ole Roy Blunt is on TV wanting a "fair wage with benefits" for Missouri workers, and damn if he hasn't voted against every minimum wage increase that has ever hit the house floor.

The Republicans are a complete bunch of phonies.



 

Not buying the tax argument

I recommend people review the articles posted at The Tax Foundation (http://www.taxfoundation.org) about the tax implications of his health plan. I don't have time to go digging at the moment, but there is a lot of confusion about what McCain is proposing. It is a tax credit, not a deduction. This would offset your taxes, dollar for dollar, not based on the tax bracket that you are in. If the taxable benefit of one's health insurance as $10K (to make math easy) and you were in the 25% tax bracket, your tax liability would be $2500. That would be matched by the $2500 credit for an individual or leave a surplus of $2500 for a family (from the $5000 credit) that could be used to further reduce a family's tax burden.

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