Written by Jillian Friesen
Econintersect: Much coverage has been given to who is really going to pay for the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act enacted by President Obama which will take effect in 2014. Trying to see through the fog of numbers and laws can be confusing. Many costs are hidden without deep probing. In the mandate are buried costs and tax burdens to individuals and businesses. All of this is intended to benefit those who are unable to pay for healthcare. Whether or not you agree with PPACA, the costs are real and unavoidable. An attempt to clear up the confusion is necessary and has been undertaken by LifeHealthPro.com.Everyone is worried about how the mandate will affect them directly. It would help to first know who will take the hits and how. The following list was developed from the article published by LifeHealthPro.com:
- First, who will take the biggest hit? The answer is the top 2% wealthiest Americans. A predicted $318 billion is expected to be collected from this class.
- Businesses are next. Any business employing 50 or more people will be required to offer their employees viable healthcare plan or be hit with penalties. Many businesses will choose to take the penalty cut leaving millions of Americans uninsured. This is an enormous issue. If this happens, uninsured employees will pay roughly $55 billion in healthcare costs. The businesses will be charged around $106 billion. Those employing under 50 employees will be exempt from providing health insurance.
- Next on the list are individuals earning $200,000 or more annually and couples earning $250,000 or more annually. Around 2.5 million households are accounted for in this category.
- If individuals are over the $200,000 or $250,ooo marks, they will be required to pay a little extra.
- 0.9% Medicare Tax
- 3.8% on investment income
- Those who are planning on selling their homes will be taxed as investment income only if:
- a couple’s profit from selling their home exceeds $500,000
- anything below is exempt from taxation
- People who enjoy the benefits of artificial tanning via sun beds are already being taxed:
- roughly 28 million people per year
- 10% tax rise on tanning
- predicted $1.5 billion in 10 years
Fortunately for the cost of the mandate, $675 billion is projected to be collected from taxes, fees, penalties and shrunken tax breaks in the next ten years. The administration is hoping these revenues will counteract any losses.
Sources
- LifeHealthPro.com: PP&ACA’s Tax Hikes are Coming: Who Pays?
- HealthCare.gov: Small Businesses
