When Will Obama And Clinton Realize Their Washington Mandated Health Care Plans Are Bad For Consumers And The Economy?
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Today, The Democrat National Committee Announced A Plan To Attack Sen. McCain's Health Care Proposal:
The DNC Will Launch An Attack On Sen. McCain's Health Care Plan. "As the headline of their soon-to-be-released four-page fact sheet reads: 'MCCAIN'S HEALTHCARE PLAN NEEDS A HEALTHY DOSE OF REALITY...'" (Jonathan Martin, "Dems To Lash McCain On Health Care Every Step Of The Way," The Politico's "Jonathan Martin" Blog, www.politico.com, 4/28/08)
REALITY CHECKUP: EVEN CONGRESSIONAL DEMOCRATS RAISE UNCERTAINTY ABOUT THE REALITY OF PASSING CLINTON AND OBAMA'S HEALTH CARE PLANS
Congressional Democrats Are Casting Doubts That The Clinton And Obama Plans Will "Match The Political Reality On Capitol Hill":
Senior Congressional Democrats Are "Maneuvering To Lower Public Expectations" Of Sen. Clinton's And Obama's Health Care Promises. "Congressional Democrats are backing away from healthcare reform promises made by their two presidential candidates, saying that even if their party controls the White House and Congress, sweeping change will be difficult. It is still seven months before Election Day, but already senior Democrats are maneuvering to lower public expectations on the key policy issue." (Manu Raju, "Dems Hedge On Healthcare," The Hill, 4/23/08)
"For Some Senators, The Promises Made By Sens. Barack Obama (D-Ill.) And Hillary Rodham Clinton (D-N.Y.) Outside Of Washington May Not Match The Political Reality On Capitol Hill." (Manu Raju, "Dems Hedge On Healthcare," The Hill, 4/23/08)
Two Senate Democrats Acknowledged That "There Is Not Enough Money" To Carry Out The Proposals And Questioned If The Nation Is "Ready For A Major National Health Care Plan":
Sen. Jay Rockefeller (D-WV) On The Obama And Clinton Health Care Plans: "We all know there is not enough money to do all this stuff. ... What they are doing is ... laying out their ambitions." (Manu Raju, "Dems Hedge On Healthcare," The Hill, 4/23/08)
Sen. Chuck Schumer (D-NY) Questioned If The U.S. Is "Ready For A Major National Heath Care Plan." "Sen. Charles Schumer (N.Y.), a member of Senate Democratic leadership and a key Hillary Clinton ally who also sits on the Finance Committee, said he is 'not sure we have the big plan on healthcare. ... Healthcare I feel strongly about, but I am not sure that we're ready for a major national healthcare plan,' Schumer said." (Manu Raju, "Dems Hedge On Healthcare," The Hill, 4/23/08)
REALITY CHECKUP: BOTH DEMOCRAT CANDIDATES HAVE COSTLY HEALTH CARE PLANS
Sen. Clinton's And Obama's Health Care Plans Come With Huge Price Tags That Will Increase Federal Spending:
Obama's Plan Could Possibly Cost Over $100 Billion A Year When Fully Implemented. "Emory University Professor Kenneth Thorpe analyzed the proposals and concluded that taxpayers would pick up a $50 billion annual tab. According to Thorpe, the actual cost of [Obama's] proposal would exceed $100 billion a year. ... Actual federal spending under the Obama plan could be higher than his estimate, Thorpe said. 'That $50 billion is really assuming that everything is really up and fully implemented,' he said, and parts of the plan would take more than five years to put into place." (Jeffrey Young, "Obama Unveils Universal Healthcare Plan," The Hill, 5/30/07)
The Cost Of Sen. Clinton's Plan Could Be "Closer To $150 Billion - 200 Billion Per Year." "Regina Herzlinger of Harvard Business School ... cautions that the cost of her approach may be closer to $150 billion-200 billion per year. If so, would the plan then require a vast expansion of Medicare or huge new taxes-Hillarycare by the back door, as some critics say?" ("If At First You Don't Succeed," The Economist, 9/22/07)
Both Democrat Candidates Are "Low-Balling The Cost" And Overstating The Amount Of Savings Included In Their Health Care Plan:
Sen. Clinton And Obama Are "Low-Balling The Cost Of Their Plans" And Ignoring The "Tough-But-Necessary" Measures To Control Costs. "More important, [Obama and Sen. Clinton] might be low-balling the cost of their plans, and neither proposes the kind of tough-but-necessary measures needed to control surging health care costs." (Editorial, "Candidates' Health Plans Duck Some Key Questions," USA Today, 2/19/08)
Sen. Clinton And Obama's Plans To Create Billions Of Dollars In Savings Are "Gauzy And Speculative." "As to the new spending, both candidates say they have identified 'pay-fors' that would more than cover the cost of the new initiatives. But will these savings materialize? ... [W]ringing tens of billions of dollars in costs out of the health-care system, are gauzy and speculative; still others - doing away with corporate subsidies, say - would be politically tough to achieve." (Editorial, "Who'll Cover The Checks?" The Washington Post, 4/25/08)
REALITY CHECKUP: BOTH DEMOCRAT CANDIDATES MAKE FALSE ASSUMPTIONS ON USING TAX CUTS
TO PAY FOR THEIR HEALTH CARE PLANS
Obama's And Sen. Clinton's Plans To Roll Back Tax Cuts For Health Care Reform Are "Doomed" Because Of Inflation:
Obama's And Clinton's Proposals To Roll Back Tax Cuts To Pay For Their Health Care Plan Are "Doomed" Because Of The Costs Of Health Care Inflation. "Even if the Clinton or Obama plans could be afforded at the outset (they would be financed by repealing President Bush's tax cuts for the wealthy), they'd be doomed by a continuation of today's inflation in health care costs." (Editorial, "Candidates' Health Plans Duck Some Key Questions," USA Today, 2/19/08)
Sen. Clinton And Obama Both Expect To Roll Back Tax Cuts To Cover The Costs Of Their Plans, But Those Are Set To Expire And Are Not Reflected In Current Budget Projections:
Chicago Tribune's Steve Chapman: "What [the Democratic contenders] don't acknowledge is that those tax cuts are already scheduled to expire in 2010, helping to eliminate the deficit. But if the money is going to be used to close the fiscal shortfall, it can't be used to pay for new programs." (Steve Chapman, Op-Ed, "After Election, The Thankless Tasks Begin," Chicago Tribune, 1/13/08)
The Government's Budget Projections Already Reflect Expiring Tax Cuts And Cannot Be Used For The Democrats' Health Care Proposals. "Leading Democrats Hillary Rodham Clinton [and] Barack Obama ... want to pay for huge chunks of their most expensive proposals by rolling back tax cuts that are set to expire anyway and are shown expiring in the government's budget calculations in the years ahead. 'The government isn't counting on that money even now,' said Len Burman, a Deputy Assistant Treasury Secretary in the Clinton administration. All the talk about saving money by letting tax cuts expire 'represents some sleight of hands.'" (Calvin Woodward, "08 Tax Plans Claim Gain Without Pain," The Associated Press, 10/1/07)
REALITY CHECKUP: THE DEMOCRATS' EMPLOYER MANDATES ARE BAD FOR THE ECONOMY
The Obama And Clinton Plans "Force Most Businesses" To Provide Insurance, Which Amounts To A Tax On Workers And Extra Costs On Consumers:
Both Clinton And Obama Institute A "Pay Or Play" Mandate On Employers To Provide Insurance. "Both candidates want a national 'pay or play' mandate, forcing employers to cover a preset percentage of their workers' health insurance or pay a fine." (Grace Marie Turner, Op-Ed, "Clinton And Obama Agree -- And They're Both Wrong," The Buffalo News, 4/21/08)
The Cost Of Government-Mandated Health Insurance Likely Would Be "Passed On To The Employee In The Form Of A Wage Cut." "But more likely, the cost of the government-mandated insurance would be passed on to the employee in the form of a wage cut, said Mark Pauly, a professor of health care systems at Wharton School at the University of Pennsylvania." (Sara Lubbes, "Perils And Pluses Of 'Play Or Pay' Insurance Mandates," CQ HealthBeat News, 9/18/07)
According To University Of Pennsylvania Professor Mark Pauly, "The Employer Mandate Is Really Using The Employer To Collect Taxes From The Workers..." (Sara Lubbes, "Perils And Pluses Of 'Play Or Pay' Insurance Mandates," CQ HealthBeat News, 9/18/07)
Employer-Mandated Insurance Leads To Extra Costs On Consumers. "If employers are forced to buy health insurance, companies could pass along that extra cost to consumers, raising the price of, for example, car repairs or home building, the experts said." (Sara Lubbes, "Perils And Pluses Of 'Play Or Pay' Insurance Mandates," CQ HealthBeat News, 9/18/07)
REALITY CHECKUP: EVEN SEN. CLINTON AND OBAMA DOUBT EACH OTHER'S PLANS
Obama Attacks Sen. Clinton's Health Care Plan:
Obama: "And the mailing that we put out accurately
indicates that the main difference between Senator Clinton's plan and mine is
the fact that she would force, in some fashion, individuals to purchase health
care. If it was not affordable, she would still presumably force them to have
it, unless there is a hardship exemption, as they've done in Massachusetts,
which leaves 20 percent of the uninsured out." (Sen. Barack Obama, MSNBC
Democrat Presidential Debate, Cleveland, OH, 3/26/08)
Sen. Clinton Attacks Obama's Health Care Plan:
Sen. Clinton: Obama's Health Care Plan "Simply Flunks The Test." ABC News' Kate Snow: "In Des Moines today, Hillary Clinton attacked Barack Obama's health care plan." Sen. Clinton: "When it comes to truth in labeling, it simply flunks the test." (ABC's, "World News With Charlie Gibson," 11/28/07)
Sen. Clinton: "[Obama's] plan would leave at least 15 million Americans uninsured, including more than 100,000 people right here in Iowa. That's a huge difference to me, to leave 15 million people virtually invisible, because that is what we would do." (CNN's, "The Situation Room," 11/28/07)
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