Wisconsin

U.S. Chamber Releases New Analysis of U.S. House Health Care Legislation

Recently, the U.S. Chamber of Commerce released a new analysis of federal healthcare reform legislation moving in the U.S. House of Representatives. This analysis, A Primer on Employer and Employee Issues in the House Health Care Reform Legislation, examines some of the consequences of enacting H.R. 3200, America's Affordable Health Choices Act of 2009. The U.S. Chamber argues the bill, in its current form, will:

• Increase the federal debt and deficits.
• Launch a massive federal bureaucracy for employer-sponsored insurance.
• Force changes to current employer plans, regardless of whether employees liked the original plans.
• Unfairly deny individual affordability credits to low and moderate income workers whose employers provide health insurance.
• Tie up substantial resources of employers, insurers, and providers to adjust to a wide variety of new rules and changes.
• Reduce spending under Medicare, but not direct those savings to address the problem of unfunded obligations under Medicare.
• Fail to reduce the rise in national health care costs.
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Related Material:
Congressional leaders fight against posting bills online (The Examiner)
Editorial: Congress should wait 72 hours before voting on most legislation (Sheboygan Press)
A Primer on Employer and Employee Issues in the House Health Care Reform Legislation  

Will Federal Healthcare Overhaul Legislation be Subject to Public Scrutiny?   Two separate efforts are underway in the U.S. Senate to require healthcare reform legislation be posted online prior to floor action.   Eight senators, Senators Blanche Lincoln (D-AR), Evan Bayh (D-IN), Mary Landrieu (D-LA), Joe Lieberman (ID-CT), Claire McCaskill (D-MO), Ben Nelson (D-NE), Mark Pryor (D-AR) and Jim Webb (D-VA), recently wrote Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-NV) requesting “greater transparency, public engagement” as the Senate works on healthcare reform legislation.  Specifically, the eight requested:   ·“legislative text and complete budget scores from the Congressional Budget Office (CBO) to be posted on a public website at least 72 hours prior to the first vote to proceed to health reform legislation;” ·“legislative text and complete CBO scores of the health care bill as amended should be made available to the public for 72 hours prior to the vote on final passage of the bill in the Senate;” ·“legislative text of all amendments filed and offered for debate on the Senate floor should be posted on a public website prior to beginning debate on the amendment on the Senate floor;” and ·“upon a final agreement between the House of Representatives and the Senate, a formal conference report detailing the agreement and complete CBO scores of the final bill should be made available to the public for 72 hours prior to the vote on final passage of the conference report in the Senate.”   Also, Senator Jim Bunning (R-KY) has introduced a Senate rule change “to enact a 72-hour waiting period and a Congressional Budget Office (CBO) score before considering any legislation in the United States Senate and all of its committees.”   So far, Senate Majority Leader Reid hasn’t endorsed a 72-hour public-review period before the U.S. Senate acts on healthcare legislation.  

Related Material:
http://www.washingtonexaminer.com/politics/Congressional-leaders-fight-against-posting-bills-online-8340658-63557217.html# http://lieberman.senate.gov/newsroom/release.cfm?id=318656 http://bunning.senate.gov/public/index.cfm?FuseAction=NewsCenter.NewsReleases&ContentRecord_id=2f6e0ff7-d87b-5095-052c-af1acffff486 http://www.washingtonexaminer.com/opinion/blogs/beltway-confidential/63661602.html http://www.sfexaminer.com/opinion/National-Editorial-No-you-cant-see-the-health-care-bill-63654482.html# (editorial) http://www.sheboyganpress.com/article/20091006/SHE06/910060397/1110/Editorial--Congress-should-wait-72-hours-before-voting-on-most-legislation (editorial)  

How Much Will Federal Healthcare Reform Cost You?
Employers for Quality Health Care Unveil Simple “Tax Calculator”

Congress continues to debate the question of whether all employers should be required to provide health care coverage to their employees. Congress would make the option simple: either buy coverage or pay a new tax. 

On the surface it may appear that paying the tax would be cheaper than purchasing coverage.  However, under this option, overall employer taxes may increase dramatically. Consider the following: ·  The new tax is in addition to all other taxes paid by the employer – no credits are given against other taxes. ·  Employers providing health care coverage receive a tax deduction that lowers overall taxes. ·  Employers do not get the same dollar value from paying a tax as they do receiving a tax deduction.
To help employers evaluate the tax ramifications of this proposal, Employers for Quality Health Care has made available, online, this simple, tax calculator. In just a few minutes, the calculator can give you a rough estimate of how the options will affect your company’s bottom line.

The Employers for Quality Health Care website contains other useful information and resources to help you take action, such as contacting your congressional representatives. Twenty state chambers of commerce and employer groups, including Wisconsin Manufacturers & Commerce, formed the “Employers for Quality Health Care,” a new coalition advocating for private-sector, patient-oriented healthcare reforms to address rising health care costs, improve quality, and reduce the number of uninsured. 

Related Material:
Employers for Quality Health Care
Employers for Quality Health Care Announcement
Employers for Quality Health Care on Facebook
Dem leader faces tough job in crafting health bill (The Associated Press)
Obama quietly tries to shore up Senate support for public option (LA Times)
Medical-Device Makers Push to Cut New Fees in Health Bill (The Wall Street Journal) EDITORIAL: The health care taxman cometh (The Washington Times)