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Get Out The Vote PA-12
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Putting People—Not the Government—in Charge of Their Health Care
President Obama and the Democrats in Congress are pushing legislation that would massively expand government's role in our health care system. Once passed, this type of health care bill would put the United States on an irreversible course toward socialized medicine. This would fundamentally change how our country runs, and make our citizens more dependent on government than ever before. President Obama promises that his health care bill will control spending, be deficit neutral, and allow those who like their health insurance to keep it, but the facts suggest otherwise:
- Researchers have estimated that as many as 83 million would lose their private insurance as a result of the creation of a government health care plan.
- The healthcare proposals are expected to cost more than $1 trillion and add about $239 billion to the deficit over the next ten years.
- Major new taxes would be imposed to finance this massive government expansion: new taxes on those making more than $350,000 and an 8 percent payroll tax on employers who don't provide insurance for their employees.
There are better ways to improve the system. Instead of increasing government control, policymakers should seek other ways to make health insurance more accessible and affordable, for example, by ending the bias in favor of employer-provided health insurance, eliminating regulations that raise the cost of insurance and price people out of the insurance market, and creating refundable tax credits for the purchase of private insurance. Any changes that are made to our health care system need to focus on empowering people—not the government—to control their own health care.
