Get your own damn health care

[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.

Secondly, and while it is not meant to sound harsh, why is it the responsibility of anyone to provide for the health care of anyone else? I don't think it is. I do not come from a position of great family health or personal health. My mom died of lupus and the process put our family in the poor house. I am now blessed to be able to have insurance or my family, so with three C-sections, a gall bladder removal, a hysterectomy, and 2 more medically required surgeries coming up in my family soon, I am very happy to pay the premiums.

While hard on the family, it was not the responsibility of anyone else to pay for the health care of my mom. It is a sad but true reality, but I am not meaning to sound heartless.

I do wish you the best, Prudence, and hope you never have those huge catatrophes you are referring to. They suck even with insurance.

[Prudence]

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.

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.