If the citizens of Indiana are now being unfairly charged for this type of coverage for the legislators, why is the “solution” to charge the taxpayers for everyone having the same type of coverage? It would seem to make more sense to make the legislators responsible for their own healthcare, like everyone else.
robert108 - 10:01am on 01/14/2006
Providing excellent, tax-funded health care to politicians is one thing. They make up a minute fraction of the population. Providing that same level of coverage and service to the entire population is another thing entirely.
It just won’t work. Or, it would probably work, but not very well. Long waits, sub-standard care...those would be the things we’d have to get used to.
Rob - 11:01am on 01/14/2006
So, it would make sense to decrease the tax burden rather than increase it, no? Let’s get the govt out of health care and return it to the market, where it should be, as a responsibility of each individual.
You missed the point of Rob’s post, marc. He said that if it’s bad for a small percentage of the population, it would be much worse for the majority of the population.
ER care isn’t paid for by holders of health insurance, it’s paid for out of general funds, in other words, all the taxpayers. The “fairness” argument just doesn’t wash here.
robert108 - 12:01pm on 01/14/2006
Oh, I get now. If you are of a certain stature in life, i.e. a politician, then you are “entitled”, but if you’re just one of the lowly constituents, “screw you”! Right?
And the entitlement in Indiana, is not just for the politicians, it is also for their children, and spouses (current and ex) for life, not just the time they are in office.
And let’s not forget about the tax funded health care benefits everyone else in government service receives, a number that is hardly a minute fraction. At last count over 15% of the working population works for governement at some level.
Like I have said before, we already have universal health care coverage in this country, it’s just that only some of us, that is those with health insurance, have to pay for it, through increased insurance premiums and health care charges.
Some might call those “hidden taxes”, I just consider them “taxes”.
If the citizens of Indiana are now being unfairly charged for this type of coverage for the legislators, why is the “solution” to charge the taxpayers for everyone having the same type of coverage? It would seem to make more sense to make the legislators responsible for their own healthcare, like everyone else.
Providing excellent, tax-funded health care to politicians is one thing. They make up a minute fraction of the population. Providing that same level of coverage and service to the entire population is another thing entirely.
It just won’t work. Or, it would probably work, but not very well. Long waits, sub-standard care...those would be the things we’d have to get used to.
So, it would make sense to decrease the tax burden rather than increase it, no? Let’s get the govt out of health care and return it to the market, where it should be, as a responsibility of each individual.
You missed the point of Rob’s post, marc. He said that if it’s bad for a small percentage of the population, it would be much worse for the majority of the population.
ER care isn’t paid for by holders of health insurance, it’s paid for out of general funds, in other words, all the taxpayers. The “fairness” argument just doesn’t wash here.
Oh, I get now. If you are of a certain stature in life, i.e. a politician, then you are “entitled”, but if you’re just one of the lowly constituents, “screw you”! Right?
And the entitlement in Indiana, is not just for the politicians, it is also for their children, and spouses (current and ex) for life, not just the time they are in office.
And let’s not forget about the tax funded health care benefits everyone else in government service receives, a number that is hardly a minute fraction. At last count over 15% of the working population works for governement at some level.
Like I have said before, we already have universal health care coverage in this country, it’s just that only some of us, that is those with health insurance, have to pay for it, through increased insurance premiums and health care charges.
Some might call those “hidden taxes”, I just consider them “taxes”.