Sometimes I Feel Like a Piece of Bologna

Reading Guide to the Pelosi Health Care Reform Bill

Mike Pence is running for Congress in the 6th District of Indiana. He may be one of the few politicians who has actually read the 1990 page Pelosi health “reform” legislation (H.R. 3962) introduced by House Democrats. The following notes were posted on his Facebook page. Today the AMA and AARP endorsed this bill. Speaker Pelosi has scheduled a vote for Saturday morning. Is this the bill you want for yourself, your parents, and your children? Forever? If not, please contact your Representative today.

Page 94—Section 202(c) prohibits the sale of private individual health insurance policies, beginning in 2013, forcing individuals to purchase coverage through the federal government.

Page 110—Section 222(e) requires the use of federal dollars to fund abortions through the government-run health plan—and, if the Hyde Amendment were ever not renewed, would require the plan to fund elective abortions.

Page 111—Section 223 establishes a new board of federal bureaucrats (the “Health Benefits Advisory Committee”) to dictate the health plans that all individuals must purchase —and would likely require all Americans to subsidize and purchase plans that cover any abortion.

Page 122—Section 233(a)(3) requires the Commissioner—the new insurance “czar”—to “issue guidance on best practices of plain language writing”—this from the same people who wrote a 1,990 page health care bill.

Page 183—Section 305(a) gives the Commissioner the power to enlist “appropriate entities” like Planned Parenthood and ACORN to engage in “outreach to specific vulnerable populations” about the bill’s new programs.

Page 211—Section 321 establishes a new government-run health plan that, according to non-partisan actuaries at the Lewin Group, would cause as many as 114 million Americans to lose their existing coverage.

Page 216—Section 322(b)(3) prohibits “any federal funds for purposes of insolvency” from being directed toward the government-run health plan—an anti-bailout provision that may seem implausible given Democrats’ role in advancing legislation to bail out Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac.

Page 225—Section 330 permits—but does not require—Members of Congress to enroll in government-run health care.

Page 255—Section 345 includes language requiring verification of income for individuals wishing to receive federal health care subsidies under the bill—while the bill includes a requirement for applicants to verify their citizenship, it does not include a similar requirement to verify applicants’ identity, thus encouraging identity fraud for undocumented immigrants and others wishing to receive taxpayer-subsidized health benefits.

Page 297—Section 501 imposes a 2.5 percent tax on all individuals who do not purchase “bureaucrat-approved” health insurance— the tax would apply on individuals with incomes under $250,000, thus breaking a central promise of then-Senator Obama’s presidential campaign.

Page 313—Section 512 imposes an 8 percent “tax on jobs” for firms that cannot afford to purchase “bureaucrat-approved” health coverage; according to an analysis by Harvard Professor Kate Baicker, such a tax would place millions “at substantial risk of unemployment”—with minority workers losing their jobs at twice the rate of their white counterparts.

Page 336—Section 551 imposes additional job-killing taxes, in the form of a half-trillion dollar “surcharge,” more than half of which will hit small businesses; according to a model developed by President Obama’s senior economic advisor, such taxes could cost up to 5.5 million jobs.

Page 520—Section 1161 cuts more than $150 billion from Medicare Advantage plans, potentially jeopardizing millions of seniors’ existing coverage.

Page 733—Section 1401 establishes a new Center for Comparative Effectiveness Research; the bill includes no provisions preventing the government-run health plan from using such research to deny access to life-saving treatments on cost grounds, similar to Britain’s National Health Service, which denies patient treatments costing more than $35,000.

Page 872—Section 1433 requires the director of food services at nursing facilities participating in Medicare and Medicaid to hold “military, academic, or other qualifications” as determined by federal bureaucrats.

Page 1067—Section 1729 requires States to cover incarcerated juveniles previously enrolled in Medicaid after their release “unless and until there is a determination that the individual is no longer eligible.”

Page 1174—Section 1802(b) includes provisions entitled “TAXES ON CERTAIN INSURANCE POLICIES” to fund comparative effectiveness research, breaking Speaker Pelosi’s promise that “We will not be taxing [health] benefits in any bill that passes the House,” and the President’s promise not to raise taxes on families with incomes under $250,000.

Page 1183—Section 1904 provides $750 million in federal funding for a new entitlement program to offer “knowledge of realistic expectations of age-appropriate child behaviors” and “skills [for parents] to interact with their child.” (And this is related to health care how??)

Page 1255—Sections 2231-2235 make veterinary students eligible for up to $283 million in federal scholarship and student loan forgiveness funding. (Why is THIS in this health care bill?)

Page 1432—Section 2531 provides incentive payments to States that enact new medical liability laws—but only if such laws do “not limit attorneys’ fees or impose caps on damages.” (As opposed to the Republican bill that offers serous tort reform.)

Page 1515—Section 2572(b) imposes labeling requirements on all vending machines nationwide, in addition to new mandates by the federal government on all restaurants with more than 20 locations.

Page 1925—Section 3101 creates a new program within the Indian Health Service to provide federal funding for “perpetrators of child sexual abuse who are Indian or members of an Indian household.”

If you would like to read the entire 1,990 pages yourself, you can find the legislation here: (Note: the above notes were posted a few days ago. Page numbers and details may have changed.)

Labels: government, health care reform, national health care