American Thinker: The true cost of ObamaCare

American Thinker: The true cost of ObamaCare: "The House of Representatives intends to ram its healthcare legislation through Congress. A mere week ago it revealed some of what it plans to do to our 'health' with the latest iteration of ObamaCare. We can only say 'some' because floor action will see new amendments added, and after that the bill must still be reconciled with the $2 trillion Senate abomination put out by Max Baucus's (D-MT) Finance Comittee in October.

The Congressional Budget Office has estimated the 10 year (2010-2019) cost of the House Democrats' bill at $1.055 trillion. As usual, there is so much budget gimmicry in these estimates as to make them virtually meaningless.

The Democrats are dishonest on so many levels about this healthcare 'reform' it is almost impossible to untangle all their lies. Let's start by clarifying some basic truths.

First, who pays for healthcare right now? That's right, the taxpayers who foot the bill not only for their own healthcare, but for illegal immigrants, the poor and seniors as well. (Some seniors continue to pay a premium for Medicare but it still doesn't cover all the costs).

Who is feeling the pain of the rapid annual growth in healthcare costs that the Democrats claim so desperately to want to fix? Right, these same taxpayers.

Some will argue that employers pick up most of the tab. That is true when employers offer healthcare policies to their employees, but it is an illusion. Businesses must make a profit to remain alive, so every cost they pick up is passed on to the consumer in higher prices. So, in reality, we pay.

Others will remind us that actually, employers don't pay the entire tab -- that offering healthcare benefits is a big plus for employers because they get subsidized from the government. Since healthcare benefits become part of a 'compensation package,' employers actually pay less, by the amount of the government subsidy, than they would have to pay the employee otherwise.

True again. Employers don't pay the full cost of healthcare benefits, the government subsidizes them. But where does the government get the funds to subsidize employer-provided healthcare? From taxes or borrowing (which will require more taxes in the future to retire the debt). So who pays? Again, we pay -- now or in the future."