Senators weigh tax hikes to pay for health care

[Chris_]

Senators weigh tax hikes to pay for health care

WASHINGTON (AP) - The Senate's top tax writer said Tuesday he is considering limits on the tax-free status of job-based health insurance to help pay for President Barack Obama's plan to cover all Americans.

Finance Committee Chairman Max Baucus, D-Mont., described his idea as senators began to grapple with how to pay for the costs of the plan, which independent experts put at about $1.5 trillion over 10 years. There are no easy options.

*snip*

Baucus said he wants to readjust the tax break, not abolish it.

"We are not going to repeal it," he said.

But Baucus suggested that the benefit could be limited by taxing health care provided to high-income individuals or by taxing the value of extravagant health insurance plans. Baucus did not specify at what income level the tax would kick in.

Uncle Ego's "tax the eeeevil rich" program gains momentum....

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[djones520]

Watch it not affect all the millionaires in Congress because they aren't paying for their Health Care.   

[DumbAss Tanker]

Watch it not affect all the millionaires in Congress because they aren't paying for their Health Care.   

I believe they actually have one of those gold-plated health plans, and of course they are almost without exception quite wealthy, however Congress has a way of exempting itself from such laws.

[thundley4]

They have decided to limit the taxing to the wealthy, because the unions raised hell about this when it was considered before. Most unions have some sort of decent health insurance.

[djones520]

They have decided to limit the taxing to the wealthy, because the unions raised hell about this when it was considered before. Most unions have some sort of decent health insurance.

Yeah, when word of this first came out a lot of people at my work center where wondering if the military was going to start getting taxed for Tricare.

[Bluesuiter-Retired]

Yeah, when word of this first came out a lot of people at my work center where wondering if the military was going to start getting taxed for Tricare.

I would not put it past them!

Lets not forget what retarded 4-star general shinseki, "the dear leader's" head of the VA, ran up the flag pole not all that long ago - a plan to REQUIRED our wounded warriors from Afghanistan and Iraq to obtain
3rd party" health insurance and pay for a portion of their care out of their own pockets.

The troops ought to be damned glad that G.W. forced his retirement, because he was wanting to be the CofS of the Army -- it would be a major nightmare for the troops had he not been forced to retire when he was.

[docstew]

I would not put it past them!

Lets not forget what retarded 4-star general shinseki, "the dear leader's" head of the VA, ran up the flag pole not all that long ago - a plan to REQUIRED our wounded warriors from Afghanistan and Iraq to obtain
3rd party" health insurance and pay for a portion of their care out of their own pockets.

The troops ought to be damned glad that G.W. forced his retirement, because he was wanting to be the CofS of the Army -- it would be a major nightmare for the troops had he not been forced to retire when he was.

uhhh, BSR, hate to break it to ya, but he WAS the CofS of the Army (we have him to thank for that silly black beret thing) but IIRC he was a Clinton appointee.  Besides, GWB brought back Schoomaker out of retirement to take that slot, which really helped out with troop morale, along with backing Gen Petraeus (sp?), which helped us get Iraq stabilized (though I never will quite forgive the extension orders my unit recieved less than a month before redeployment)

[Bluesuiter-Retired]

uhhh, BSR, hate to break it to ya, but he WAS the CofS of the Army (we have him to thank for that silly black beret thing) but IIRC he was a Clinton appointee.  Besides, GWB brought back Schoomaker out of retirement to take that slot, which really helped out with troop morale, along with backing Gen Petraeus (sp?), which helped us get Iraq stabilized (though I never will quite forgive the extension orders my unit recieved less than a month before redeployment)

I stand corrected.  The whole black beret thing slipped my mind -- old age creepin in.

The recent shitcanning of the one general reminded me of the truman / MacArthur debacle.   truman saw MacArthur as a political threat, and the funny thing was he had no political ambitions, but the voters showed truman how they felt about his phucking over MacArthur.  For the first time in this nation's history a president didn't have the will to fight a war without victory as a goal.  Sadly it won't be the last time.