Liberal Democrats have been determined in their desire to destroy the institution of traditional marriage between one man and one woman for decades. If any more evidence is needed about this fact, it is provided in both versions of ObamaCare which were passed in the U.S. House of Representatives and U.S. Senate late last year.
The "Wall Street Journal" reported that "Some married couples would pay thousands of dollars more for the same health insurance coverage as unmarried people living together, under the health insurance overhaul plan pending in Congress.
"The built-in 'marriage penalty' in both House and Senate healthcare bills has received scant attention. But for scores of low-income and middle-income couples, it could mean a hike of $2,000 or more in annual insurance premiums the moment they say 'I do'".
This is absolutely reprehensible and must be stopped. Secret negotiations between Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi, Senator Majority Leader Harry Reid and White House officials are going on right now behind closed doors.
The Republican Leader John Boehner, from Ohio, who will probably be the next Speaker of the House if the Democrats lose control of the House this November said about the Democrats scheming to pass ObamaCare: "jamming this sort of complex legislation through Congress in the dark of night means that we are just learning about some of its more damaging provisions." And the whopping marriage penalty tax on married couples is just such a damaging provision.
"The Wall Street Journal" article goes on to say about the Democrats' marriage penalty tax: "The disparity comes about in part because subsidies for purchasing health insurance under the plan from congressional Democrats are pegged to federal poverty guidelines. That has the effect of limiting subsidies for married couples with a combined income, compared to if the individuals are single.
"People who get their health insurance through an employer wouldn't be affected. Only people that buy subsidized insurance through new exchanges set up by the legislation stand to be impacted. About 17 million people would receive such subsidies in 2016 under the House plan, the Congressional Budget Office estimates. The bills cap the annual amount people making less than 400% of the federal poverty level must pay for health insurance premiums, ranging from 1.5% of income for the poorest to 11% at the top end, under the House plan.
"For an unmarried couple with income of $25,000 each, combined premiums would be capped at $3,076 per year, under the House bill. If the couple gets married, with a combined income of $50,000, their annual premium cap jumps to $5,160 -- a "penalty" of $2,084. Those figures were included in a memo prepared by House Republican staff.
"The disparity is slightly smaller in the Senate version of health-care legislation, chiefly because premium subsidies in the House bill are more targeted towards low-wage earners. Under the Senate bill, a couple with $50,000 combined income would pay $3,450 in annual premiums if unmarried, and $5,100 if married -- a difference of $1,650."
Married couples whose combined income will make them ineligible for subsidies could find themselves paying up to $5,000 more in insurance premiums according to the WSJ article. It is disgraceful that the Democrat-controlled Congress and the White House would even consider punishing married couples.
Already, America's seniors -- 2/3 of seniors oppose ObamaCare -- will see a drop in their earned benefits in the amount of 1/2 trillion dollars in Medicare cuts. It is time for the congressional leaders to pay attention to the American people and their strong opposition to ObamaCare and drop their plans for socialized medicine which especially hurts married couples and America's senior citizens.
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TAKE ACTION: Contact your members of Congress and let them know how you feel about this issue [1].
Links:
[1] http://www.cc.org/olcta/stop_government_takeover