It would be nice if the political class could be put out of its misery, or at least prevented from making the rest of us miserable.  The latest is Congressman Scott Tipton’s meeting with his constituents in Pueblo. What was so shocking apparently was the level of anger expressed towards Mr. Tipton by a growing number of voters over the House Republicans’ repeal and replacement of Obamacare. But not to worry, Mr. Tipton confidently assured them that the repeal and replacement of Obamacare had not really changed things, and of course Mr. Tipton was absolutely right. For example under Obamacare you were penalized through your taxes if you failed to have health insurance. Under the Republican replacement, you are penalized by paying a 30 percent surcharge on the front end of your insurance plan if you do not have insurance, so it is about the same. 

Under the old system, some businesses were taxed in order to help pay for Obamacare. Under the Republican plan, many of those taxes are repealed as well as the requirement for larger businesses to provide health insurance for their employees. But wait! As the Republican replacement bill reaches the Senate it is very likely that many Republican senators will want those taxes reinstated as well as the employee mandate for health insurance. In addition, under the Republican replacement, the funding for states in regards to healthcare may be increased, which is probably in part why the senate wants the taxes reinstated in the first place.

Therefore, in the final analysis, after this bill makes it though the Senate and is reconciled with the House version, the vast majority of Obamacare will most likely still be there and who knows, there may even be some enhancements such as additional state funding! 

So to all those who are still angry I say, “Don’t worry” in the end, Obamacare will be intact. Because in the end the Republicans are in charge and they do not have the stomachs or the character for true reform in the first place, so everything will pretty much be as it was before (no pun intended)! 

What the town hall attendees should have been angry about is that once again the Republican Party has lied and failed to fully repeal Obamacare as they had promised earlier, even though the federal government is bankrupt and printing money. Let’s face it, like the Democrats, the Republicans believe in socialized medicine and in increasingly expensive and unworkable healthcare. I mean look at how many healthcare providers are going out of business! 

Remember our representatives are exempt from Obama care while they serve in office. Remember too, that in the past, the Republicans voted numerous times for “full repeal” during the Obama administration. Yet now with a Republican president in power they do not have the courage, as real repeal would now carry with it real consequences rather than just a presidential veto. Let us all be thankful that the founding fathers were not like these individuals! 

So once again, let me give the corrupt, and spineless Republicans some advice.  If you are truly interested in beginning the “fixing process” of the health care fiasco that is Obamacare and its near identical replacement that you have so brilliantly crafted, how about eliminating all business taxes. 

I know I talked about this in my previous letter titled “Jobs”, but we have to understand that hospitals and healthcare insurance providers pay business taxes too. Most hospitals probably pay close to 34 percent in federal taxes and even more if you include payroll taxes, (probably closer to 40 percent). The hospitals pass on these expenses, as do doctors to the health insurance providers. The health insurance providers in turn probably pay about the same 34 percent rate in federal taxes depending on their size and again more if you include payroll taxes, and like the hospitals, they too pass on these costs.  In the end, all these expenses from excessively high taxes find their way onto the doorstep of the consumers and are reflected in higher premiums, co pays and deductibles as well as reduced services etc. This also applies to many of the pharmaceutical companies that develop and manufacture our medicines together with those businesses who distribute the medications directly to us. 

So if the Republicans truly want to begin making a dent in the out of control costs, affordability and access to quality healthcare, then they should try eliminating business taxes along with other cumbersome regulations, as the healthcare industry is just as effected by this nonsense as are other institutions. Once again, I realize that this is not a “cure all” for everything that ails the American Health Care System, but it is a damn good start.   

Draining the swamp requires character coupled with courage and our ruling elite do not have either in great abundance.

Take your government back. Take your healthcare back! Article five people article five.  [email protected]

Steven Howard

Monte Visa