Healthcare Post #1

To better understand the topic of healthcare, I did some research about what Obamacare actually proposes, since I've heard many complaints about this plan. To begin, Obamacare focuses on three main components: an employer mandate, an individual mandate, and a government run healthcare system. The "employer mandate" forces and requires all employers to pay for health benefits for their workers. If they fail to do so, business owners will be given higher taxes. Although it may be beneficial for workers to have their healthcare paid for, people may see this as a disadvantage, especially business owners and employers, because raising taxes could reduce the number of workers to be hired if there is not enough money to support the workers and the business itself.

Next, Obamacare proposes an "individual mandate." With this overture, those without healthcare will be forced to be a part of an individual health insurance company. If not, you must join a government-run plan. This would create universal healthcare in our country, as President Obama wanted. Those against Obamacare, however, would argue that the government would then take over healthcare, and all the insurance companies would be removed from the market.

Obamacare also proposes a government-run healthcare system. With this plan, individual health insurance companies would no longer exist, as mentioned earlier. The government may then raise taxes to fund healthcare. Although this may be a misunderstanding. From another source, I found this may be false because the Affordable Care Act would make healthcare be controlled by the people, not the government. Families and individuals that don't have access to affordable coverage would be able to receive tax credits to help them purchase private health insurance. 


From this research, it is difficult for me to still decide which side to take. From the sources I've found, both sides seemed biased in the reading, so I am not sure how healthcare should be dealt with.


sources: http://www.atr.org/obamacare-a3568
http://www.whitehouse.gov/healthreform/myths-and-facts#healthcare-menu