Don’t Want Insurance? Too Bad.
This is what some Massachusans are hearing lately, as 5% of the state’s population will be fined for not having health insurance.
You read that right, if you live in Massachusetts you are required by law , signed by former Governor Mitt Romney in 2006, to have health coverage, or pay a penalty.
I wonder what private insurance funds lobbied for this mess, and have had huge windfall profits?
So, an Associated Press report came out yesterday detailing that almost 100,000 citizens within the state did not comply with the law, and will be penalized, potentially to the tune of $912 a person . What happens to these penalties, you ask?
A total of $9.7 million in fines was deposited into a trust fund to help cover the cost of the law. Monthly penalties for those who can afford health care but refuse will jump and could total as much as $912 for individuals by December.
The penalties are used to cover the cost of the law??? Is this a sick joke?
Furthermore bureaucrats set what deems whether a person can afford to pay for health insurance or not.
In a statement explaining the penalties, the revenue department said, "These penalties apply only to adults who are deemed able to afford health insurance."
Residents who cannot afford insurance, based on state standards, won’t be penalized. Residents who face penalties can appeal.
This is just amazing to me. What happens if I made just enough money to "qualify" for the requirement of being able to "afford" health insurance, but have a ton of unexpected expenses, and actually cannot afford it?
What if I have a preexisting condition, and cannot get insured, or can for an extremely exorbitant amount that I could never afford? Do I have to pay a penalty?
I guess I pay for a ton of services that I don’t want to pay for now through my taxes, why would this be different?
My only question is, when are we going to be mandated to have telescreens in our homes?