An Open Letter to the Undecided 15%
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| Are you spending my future away, Master Progressive? |
Gentle Readers,
Please pass this on to your undecided compatriots. About 15% of the electorate is still malleable.
Despite a belief to the contrary, the middle-class and lower-upper class aren’t just about to be screwed by the expiration of the current tax rates, but they are also about to get screwed, and screwed good by Obamacare in 2013.
The Americans for Tax Reform released a reminder of five nasty taxes coming to a middle class neighborhood near you in 2013:
- Medical Device Tax
- Flexible Spending Account Cap of $2,500
- Surtax on Investment Income for families earning $250,000
- Itemized Medical Deductions must exceed 10% as opposed to 7.5%
- Last but not least, Medicare Payroll Tax Hike, again on families earning $250,000 increases 0.9%.
So the medical device tax raises the cost of health care, both with resultant increases in premiums AND out of pocket costs for non-insured medical devices (such as glucometers).
The FSA cap hurts the middle class who relies on the pre-tax aspect of the account to save a few bucks.
The surtax on investment income hurts middle class individuals who wish to cash in on their investments. They will now need to do it more slowly, lest they get hosed.
Itemized medical deductions? Anyone with 7.5%-9.9% of their income in health-care expenses gets hosed, and again, that hurts you, Mr. John Q. Sixpack if you are in that lucky donut hole.
The Medicare payroll tax hike, pure redistributionist crap. Ironically enough despite the hikes Medicare money is disappearing off into the ether, as demonstrated by reduced payment schedules for physician services. But who does it really hurt? Those who Dr. J. does business with. He will have less discretionary income. Less shoes will be bought for the Lil Resident. Less Lego’s for the Lil Medstudent. He may furnish J. Abbey a little more slowly. Less trips to the movies. He might start bringing his lunch to work on days where he doesn’t have a lunch meeting. So it hurts those around him.
Again, a reminder that the choice between a more free society and a gilded cage is a little more than a month way.
Love,
Dr. J.
