It’s Saturday, but I am still thinking hard about healthcare and the ongoing debate.  In that thought, it seemd to me like I should check the headlines today and see what is going on.  In that light, I found that Obama continues to want to ram through the healthcare reform bill without any real Republican/Conservative participation.

The Committees in Washington are passing job killer ideas.  Small business owners can’t bear the brunt of the new program.  I wonder why these guys can’t get it that most jobs are created from the minds and sweat of small business owners.  Somewhere along the way, many people decided to declare war on those people that have and are successful in business.  I don’t understand why the politicians don’t get it that small business owners can only take so much in taxes.  Also, raising taxes in a recession is just not smart.

See the Fox news article today on the Republicans being locked out of the process.

http://www.foxnews.com/politics/2009/07/18/obama-walks-line-outreach-republicans-health-care-legislation/

http://docs.house.gov/gopleader/House-Democrats-Health-Plan.pdf

See and click on the link above from the House of Representatives.  This is the proposed process flow of healthcare in the dems new bill.  Anyone really want this?

See the information below from SIIA.  This is their interpretation of the Healthcare bill now being released by one committee in the House.   

Information Disclaimer Note: Congressional developments regarding health care reform are fluid and SIIA lobbyists are continually meeting with Members of Congress, key staff members and other industry stakeholders, which generate ongoing intelligence.  In order to keep our members informed in “real time”, we will report relevant information as we become aware of it.  Given that the political process is inherently unpredictable, information communicated in previous reports may be superseded in subsequent reports.  Should you have any questions in between reports, please contact SIIA’s Washington, DC office directly at 202/463-8161.  House Leadership Releases Healthcare Reform Proposal Harmful to Employer-System and Private Market 

SIIA’s Government Relations Staff moments ago received a copy of the legislative text of the House Democrats’ healthcare reform proposal to be formally introduced later this afternoon.  The reform package seeks to inject significant government involvement in our nation’s healthcare system and many of the proposals would have devastating effects for the self-insurance industry, the Employer-Based Healthcare System and the private healthcare marketplace as a whole.  The proposal includes provisions to have a government definition of acceptable benefits, government control over provider reimbursement rates, coverage mandates on individuals and businesses and numerous and burdensome tax increases on businesses and workers to pay for this massive overhaul of our nation’s healthcare system.

Formal consideration by one or all of the 3 House Committees of jurisdiction could start as early as tomorrow morning.  This would give Members of Congress less than 24 hours to read-through, understand and formulate positions on a bill that’s over 1000 pages of complex legislative text – and a proposal that would be a complete restructuring of over 1/7^th of our nation’s economy.  Also, this incomprehensible short amount of time between language release and formal consideration gives the American public absolutely no opportunity to review the provisions and comment to their Federal elected-officials.

Unfortunately, this proposal runs counter to President Obama’s healthcare reform pledges; preservation of the employer-system, the ability to keep the coverage you like; and no new taxes on the middle-class.

The following is an initial summary of the provisions that would directly impact the self-insurance industry and the employer-based system:

·         Insurance Market Reforms:

§  Prohibits the application of preexisting conditions

§  Guaranteed issue

§  Rating rules

§  Minimum “essential” benefits package – defined by bureaucrats of the proposed Benefits Advisory Committee

§  Prohibition of cost-sharing for preventative services

·         National Health Insurance Exchange:

§  Within 3 years of enactment, employers of all sizes will be allowed to enter Exchange

§  Bureaucrat defined level of benefits

§  Employees of Exchange participating employers allowed to choose any Exchange plan

§  Grandfathered Exchange eligibility for individuals (once eligible, continue to be so even if circumstances change)

·         Government-Run Insurance Plan:

·         Government-run and subsidized plan as a National Exchange option

·         Provide bureaucrat defined benefits

·         Tax-payer subsidized funding for initial administrative costs – advantage over private plans

·         Bureaucrat controlled provider reimbursement rates – Medicare + 5% rates

·         Tax-payer provided subsidies for Exchange participation for workers with up to $88,000 in income – (Subsidies prohibited for participation in employer-sponsored plans)

·         Individual Coverage Mandate:

§  Individuals required to obtain government-approved healthcare coverage

§  Non-compliance penalty – 2.5% of income

·         Employer Coverage Mandate:

§  Mandates that employers offer their employees healthcare coverage

§  Bureaucrat defined “acceptable coverage”

§  Mandates minimum premium cost-sharing – 72.5% for individual coverage, 65% for family coverage

§  Non-compliance penalty – 8% of the average salary times the number of full-time equivalent workers

·         Tax on Self-Insured Health Plans:

• Proposed per-capita tax on all self-insured health plans to fund the proposed Comparative Effectiveness Research Trust Fund – A government-controlled entity tasked with determining what treatments are not acceptable for insurance coverage

·         Mandated Self-Insurance Health Plan Study to Determine:

§  Types of employers by characteristics that self-insure verses full-insure

§  The similarities and differences between self-insured and fully-insured plans

§  The financial solvency and reserve levels of self-insured plans

§  The risk of self-insured plans not being able to pay obligations

§  Rating rules that encourage adverse selection or encourage small and mid-size employers to self-insure

§  Requires a report to be submitted by the newly-created Health Choices Commissioner to make recommendations to ensure against incentives for small and mid-size employers to self-insure

SIIA Urges the Self-Insurance Industry to Make our Message Heard

SIIA urges all those in the self-insurance industry interested in preserving the way we do business and the benefits we provide to 75 million Americans covered by self-insured plans, to use the resources provided in SIIA’s Grassroots Toolkit and contact their Members of Congress to voice our message. 

The threat to the self-insurance industry and the employer-based system under which we operate in has never been more significant.  Now is the time to voice our powerful and unified voice to politicians in Washington that we will not stand for any proposals that would cause significant damage to our industry and to those lives we cover. 

SIIA’s Grassroots Toolkit can be found at 

http://www.siia.org/i4a/pages/index.cfm?pageid=4717.  If you

Radio Address to the Nation on Economic Growth and Tax Reform
August 3, 1985

My fellow Americans:

The month of August marks an important milestone for our country. Four years ago we took our first giant step toward putting this economy back in your hands when I signed our bill to lower and permanently index the tax rates of every working American. After being held back so long, a ringing declaration went forth that the dream of economic freedom was alive and well in America’s soul. And you responded, bursting ahead with energy and enthusiasm, ignoring all those who were downright panic-struck that Washington could no longer reach deeper and deeper into the pocketbooks of your families. While they were busy predicting disaster, you began transforming our economy from top to bottom.

From the nightmare of interest rates that, at 21\1/2\ percent, had pierced the highest level since the Civil War, double-digit inflation raging like an uncontrollable virus, long gas lines, and the worst tax burden in peacetime history, we awoke to a new dawn of progress — swift, sure, and steady progress that has continued for 4 years and is continuing today. Inflation, which has been as high as 13 percent, has not just eased but has sharply declined to less than 4 percent. The prime interest rate, while still too high, has dropped to its lowest level in almost 7 years. And decontrolling oil prices did not send the price of gas at the pump skyrocketing as some said it would; prices are lower today than 4 years ago.

Progress regained has renewed our confidence. We can see and feel that confidence in the vigorous increases in consumer purchases, in greater incentives to save, and in the advances to record levels in the stock market. All of us are building a new America, a dynamic America that’s created nearly 8 million jobs in the last 32 months and almost 500,000 last month alone; an enterprising America with a record 635,000 new business incorporations last year, the auto, housing, and construction industries rejuvenated, and spectacular breakthroughs in new technologies; and, most important, a successful America with one of the most impressive economic expansions in postwar history. Even as we speak, new strength in factory orders, jobs, leading economic indicators, and equity markets show the U.S. economy flexing its muscles for another big push toward greater prosperity.

But this building of a new America is not complete. We still face a great challenge in reducing the deficit, but those who insist that spending cannot be cut any further and that we must increase your taxes to reduce the deficit are flatout wrong.

Last February I submitted a budget calling for large savings, including elimination of 17 costly and wasteful programs. The budget resolution finally agreed to by the Congress this week represents a good-faith beginning to tackle the deficit the right way — by reducing what government can spend, rather than simply taking more of what you earn so government can keep spending levels high. But when Congress votes on the various spending bills this fall, we will review each one line by line to be sure they don’t contain excessive spending levels or might jeopardize our national security.

Let’s all recognize that spending has not been cut to the bone and that a tax increase would only reduce our incentives to work, save, and invest and ultimately weaken our economy and make deficits far worse. Sometimes it’s difficult to remember that you didn’t send us to Washington to feed the alligators; you sent us to drain the swamp. We didn’t come to raise your taxes, but to lower them. And what better moment than this anniversary of our first tax cut than to sound the trumpet once more.

This nation is poised to forge ahead, poised to give every citizen the noble chance to break free and taste the thrill of high adventure. Our next great advance must come from a total overhaul of our tax code. And make no mistake, that day is coming. As Congressman Dan Rostenkowski, chairman of the House Ways and Means Committee, indicated this week, “Reports of the death of tax reform are greatly exaggerated.” We can pass an historic tax reform to sweep away unjust loopholes favoring the powerful few. We can reduce the top rate of tax to 15 or 25 percent for all but a tiny fraction. We can reach for excellence and make America the most powerful success story for growth and human progress the world has ever known. And, yes, with your help, we can continue the success we began 4 years ago.

Till next week, thanks for listening, and God bless you.

Note: The President spoke at 12:06 p.m. from Camp David, MD.

Well, it looks like the House is at in full force now, attempting to pass a healthcare reform package before August.  I believe any proposed bill will have to get through 3 committees, and then to the floor.  The Dems seem hell bent on passing something, anything to give Obama his “win”.

Yet, as of yesterday, the country is now 1 Trillion dollars in debt.  So how will the dems pay for it?  the latest on the table is tax the wealthy up to 1.5% and to mandate that individuals purchase health insurance.  For now, the stick it to the wealthy approach might just sell.  But one day, sooner or later, with 1 Trillion dollars of debt, everyone is going to be paying higher taxes.

As expected, SB 3886 seems to have no chance of passing in Tennessee.  This bill would have required a PPO to hold a direct contract with the medical provider and would not allow for group health PPO contracts to be used for Workers’ Compensation.  Supporters of this bill will most likely bring it up again in 2009.

John McCain has a bright idea. He wants to cut taxes for business and for consumers. First, he wants to cut business corporate tax from 35% to 25%. As a business owner, it is very clear that I can hire more people if my tax burden is lower. For the non business owner, this may not make sense, but I truly would increase my hiring with a lower tax burden. So, what is the benefit of me hiring more people? well, it means that more taxes will go into the treasury of the United States. Every time it is tried, the lower the taxes, the more money is collected by the government in income taxes. More recently, John Kennedy, Ronald Reagan, and George Bush (43) have cut taxes with increased tax collection.

McCain also wants to cut taxes on gasoline. I see how this could be a problem as this money is earmarked for highway projects, but I think in the end we all win with lower taxes. The money is available, it is instead a matter of how we spend our tax dollars.

USA Todays opinion page today can only focus on how much tax revenue the country would loose if taxes were to be cut. These are the same ideas that will make this country not be competitive with the world. Our corporate tax rate is too high, and we must compete with the world. Lowering taxes unleashes the minds of American business and take away the burdens of doing business. Our mess during the Jimmy Carter years was only resolved by supply side economics. It works, and we all need to revisit why Ronald Reagan was the man for his day. Is John McCain that man for us now? I don’t know, but I do know that his rivals are tax and spend politicians.

As we all know, Louisiana has been an absolute mess in recent years when it comes to medical cost containment in the workers’ compensation arena.  Yet, finally, there is a bill in Louisiana that may solve the problem of not being able to take PPO discounts.

SB 545, http://www.legis.state.la.us/billdata/byinst.asp?sessionid=08RS&billid=SB545&doctype=ALL  attempts to allow for the application of PPO workers’ compensation discounts.  Specifically, the bills states “ Nothing herein shall be construed or interpreted to prevent the insurer from entering into agreements with preferred provider organizations which provide or fees and other payments which deviate from the schedule set forth in this section.”  Hopefully, this bill will pass and finally take care of this issue and allow for medical cost containment measures.

This bill also states that the employee or claimant shall be notified by the insurer that a PPO network is in place via a letter.  This notification letter notifying the employee of the PPO, will then be taken to their provider at the time of treatment.  Unfortunately, the employee can still choose any provider they want for treatment.

It’s certainly not a perfect bill, but it just might be the fix for workers’ compensation PPO issues in Louisiana.

This week was our annual open enrollment for group health insurance, which no one enjoys as there can be a lot of paper work.  Once again, we kept our insurance with Blue Cross as we only had a minor increase in premiums.  As the insurance agent gave his annual spiel on why we should all deposit more in our HSA accounts, he also explained how insurance is simply a finance tool for healthcare. In other words, healthcare expenses are what they are.  Insurance is simply one way to pay for healthcare expenses.  Other options, of course, include paying for all of our healthcare expenses out of pocket.  As I read various blogs, listen to media reports on TV, and read newspapers, it is clear that too many people see insurance as something other than a finance tool.  The anger towards insurance companies can be intense, as individuals have horror stories of how needed procedures or medicines are not covered at times when in need.  It’s all a matter of how the policy is written.  Yet, often these people see themselves as being “denied” care by the insurance company.  It is unfortunate that this view is so prevalent.  We all have universal access to healthcare now.  That is, we can go to a physician and get treatment for a fee.  The real issue is the method of paying for the healthcare.For me, private insurance (not the government) continues to be the best way to finance healthcare.  If the government ever took it over (single payer system) we would all be very sorry to see what “free” healthcare really costs.

I guess Global Warming is still a topic that can’t be questioned?  Well, here is the latest information that seems to contradict Global Warming fanatics.  According to NOAA,

http://www.ncdc.noaa.gov/oa/climate/research/2008/feb/feb08.html

The average temperature across both the contiguous U.S. and the globe during December 2007-February 2008 (climatological boreal winter) was the coolest since 2001.  It was also the 54th coolest winter since national records began in 1895.

In a related topic, the founder of The Weather Channel wants to sue Al Gore for Fraud.  Now that is a fun twist.  John Coleman started The Weather Channel in 1982, and does not like the direction of the channel’s attempt in his mind to tell people how to live based on the climate.  According to Coleman he said the following about Global Warming: “I think if we continue the cooling trend a couple of more years, the general public will at last begin to realize that they’ve been scammed on this global-warming thing.”  http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,337710,00.html

What do both of these articles have to do with Healthcare?  See a previous post on this topic, but here is the point again.  The Global Warming crowd is the same group of Liberals that want to run healthcare because they know better than the rest of us.  Once again, the science points toward a climate that is constantly in motion and changing, not the scam as John Coleman describes it of Global Warming.