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Originally Posted by scaeagles
I think you have a misconception. Employers do not pay one dime of your benefits nor any of your social security or medicare. This is a myth. When anyone is hired, the consideration is not the salary or rate per hour, but the cost of employment. Yes, technically the company pays for it, but it is simply money that you don't see in the form of salary - it's the cost of employment. They cannot hire someone at $10/hour unless they can afford a cost of employment of probably $16. That's a guesstimate.
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I am perfectly aware of how my health care benefits are obtained. Yes, my employer does pay a portion of my health care premiums. Every year they hand out the cost per employee sheets. Unless they're lying, I see how much of the premium is paid by my employer on my behalf. These amounts are not reported on my income tax forms as income, but rather by the company as expenses. So I respectfully suggest that you are mistaken and that a portion of my medical insurance premiums are paid by my employer. (And I'm also perfectly capable of reading a W2 and noting the various deductions, which were not under discussion.) And if in this magical system my employer gives me the full $16 "cost of employment" to apply to HSAs or premiums or whatever, then fine. But what I expect would actually happen is a great cry of "Goodie!" from the administrative offices as they no longer have to pay $6/hr for me, but I still take home $10. And now I purchase coverage, assuming I can afford it, on my own.
I'm asking for a basic level of care, in the same way most people expect a basic level of fire or police services. Am I to assume you believe that if someone can not afford life-saving treatment that we say tut-tut, not our responsibility, and let them die? So sorry chemo's expensive. Too bad you didn't earn enough to pay for it all yourself. How civilized. The rich get health care and the poor are completely expendable.