How would McCain’s health care plan effect me and my family?
Atreyu’s Mommy & Due Aug 24 asked:
My husband receives free health insurance from his employer, which also covers my son and me. I am not exactly sure how McCain’s health plan works for those who already have health insurance. Do we still receive the $5,000 credit? I read on his website that it goes straight to the insurance company or into a health savings account. Is that only if you have a credit after your taxes are deducted from the $5,000 or will we still owe taxes and just have $5,000 sitting in a health savings account? We’ve never paid more than $4,000 a year in taxes. Please explain as much as you know. I just don’t know how it would all work.
I know that he plans to tax our benefits and that most likely we will loose our benefits because of it. He works at a small paint contracting company (owned by my family) and they are struggling as it is. They may either drop our coverage, or start charging us for it.
I am looking for information other than what I already know. I don’t need to hear why I should support one candidate or the other, just looking for facts on McCain’s plan. I have already chosen who I am voting for.
Broderick Lavadie
My husband receives free health insurance from his employer, which also covers my son and me. I am not exactly sure how McCain’s health plan works for those who already have health insurance. Do we still receive the $5,000 credit? I read on his website that it goes straight to the insurance company or into a health savings account. Is that only if you have a credit after your taxes are deducted from the $5,000 or will we still owe taxes and just have $5,000 sitting in a health savings account? We’ve never paid more than $4,000 a year in taxes. Please explain as much as you know. I just don’t know how it would all work.
I know that he plans to tax our benefits and that most likely we will loose our benefits because of it. He works at a small paint contracting company (owned by my family) and they are struggling as it is. They may either drop our coverage, or start charging us for it.
I am looking for information other than what I already know. I don’t need to hear why I should support one candidate or the other, just looking for facts on McCain’s plan. I have already chosen who I am voting for.
Broderick Lavadie
By cutting your benefits and taxing it.
It could be mean that there would be a risk that you could lose your health insurance from your employer. It is a lousy plan. I have mine, as well, paid by my employer. I don’t think Universal Health Care is a good idea either, but McCain’s idea is horrible. It really gives no incentive for employers to offer health insurance to their employees.
the biggest impact it would have is that it could encourage your husbands company to drop insurance for the people…
and that’s according to the national chamber of commerce… which is a pretty conservative organization..
You will be forced to pay taxes on your health care. I still have not figured out why one should pay taxes on their own health care.
Clearly you will be better off under McCain than Obama. Don’t listen to the Liberals, they specialize in frightening old and poor people.
if McCain gets in you might as well tell your husband to get the KY jelly out and bend over. I also have a free insurance from my employer and with McCain’s plan that insurance will no longer be free.
it is Simply a tax increase on the middle class.
Well, the most glaring thing is that whatever your employer pays for your husband’s insurance plan on your behalf will be treated as income and you will be taxed for it. So, if your plan costs a total of $12,000 (the number the candidates most often use for the yearly cost of a plan) and your employer pays $7,000 of that, and you pay the rest through payroll deductions, you will be taxed for that $7,000 your employer pays for your insurance as income at whatever tax bracket you’re currently in. If that $7,000 takes you up a tax bracket, you’ll have to add that into the equation.
Then there’s this $5,000 tax credit. That will be given directly to the insurance company for each plan. On his site, he does mention being able to put what’s leftover from it into a Health Savings Account. I think the intent is for this tax credit to help with the money you pay out of your paycheck for your healthcare. McCain claims, on his website, that by taxing your employer paid benefits as income that this tax is offset by the $5,000 credit. But he admits that the plan would probably cost $12,000. And if that’s the case, the employers still pay more for your healthcare than you do. You’re already taxed for the money you pay for your health care (because it’s income.) and now you’ve just gotten a raise in the amount of whatever your employer pays on your insurance.
You’ll keep paying your half like you’ve always done. But it’s not like you’re going to get a check to help pay for your healthcare. In fact, a few bucks more will be taken from your check in taxes each pay period. Sounds like the tax credit isn’t available until tax time so if you get a refund it’ll be jumbled in with that.