Obamacare Fine to Be Owed by as Many as 6 Million Taxpayers

[Suzanimal]

http://i.imgur.com/FaXCAtSm.png


(Bloomberg) -- As many as 6 million U.S. taxpayers will have to pay a penalty of as much as 1 percent of income because they went without health insurance in part or all of 2014, the Treasury Department said.

The penalty, part of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act, is designed to encourage people to sign up for health insurance using the expanded options and financial assistance available under the law, known as Obamacare. The penalty would apply to about 2 percent to 4 percent of all taxpayers for 2014.

Tax filing for 2014 opened Jan. 20, and the Internal Revenue Service’s Form 1040 -- for federal income tax -- includes a new Line 61 asking if the taxpayer has health insurance. Three-quarters of taxpayers won’t have to do anything more than check that box, said Mark Mazur, the department’s assistant secretary for tax policy. The remainder will have to to take additional steps, though most won’t pay a penalty, he said on a conference call with reporters.

The IRS has been preparing for additional strain during the tax season as people adjust to the rule, warning that about half the people who call its toll-free phone lines won’t be able to get through.

About 3 percent to 5 percent of taxpayers got tax credits last year to help afford their premiums on Obamacare insurance plans, Mazur said. Ten percent to 20 percent weren’t insured for all or part of the year but will be able to claim an exemption. People who owe a penalty “will pay a fee because they made a choice not to obtain health insurance that they could have afforded, and they’re not eligible for one of the exemptions,” he said.

The government will issue about 4 million new tax forms, called a 1095A, to people who received the tax credits, Kevin Counihan, the CEO of healthcare.gov, the federal insurance exchange, said on the call.

The tax penalties start at $95 and can be as much as $12,240 for a wealthy family.

“We’re not here to have a goal to get a certain fee income or to make this difficult for folks,” he said. “We want to get people insured and have the peace of mind of health insurance.”

For 2014, the government is allowing taxpayers to claim a long list of exemptions from the requirement to carry insurance. They include excuses such as a death in the family, domestic violence or if a person’s 2013 coverage was canceled.

Counihan’s agency and the IRS have both established websites to assist people with Obamacare-related tax questions. The Department of Health and Human Services said today that it’s trained tens of thousands of volunteers from organizations including AARP, the interest group for elderly people, to help.

About 8 million people purchased health-care policies through the government-run insurance exchanges in 2014, and of those about 85 percent received subsidies, which went directly to insurance companies. The U.S. gets about 150 million income tax returns a year.

http://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2015-01-28/obamacare-penalty-to-be-owed-by-as-many-as-6-million-taxpayers

[ZENemy]

I did not pay it last year nor will I pay it this year, in fact I will never pay it. Im certain they will make many attempts to collect it but I will not give it up voluntarily. I dont keep any money in the bank and do not receive tax refunds.

I will not pay a fine for being in good health.

[Acala]

HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA! My only regret is that I cannot see the many faces of Obama supporters when the realize what has happened to them. A lot of young people are getting an education early.

[jbauer]

HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA! My only regret is that I cannot see the many faces of Obama supporters when the realize what has happened to them. A lot of young people are getting an education early.

Do you think many Obama voters are bright enough to figure it out?

[Dr.3D]

Do you think many Obama voters are bright enough to figure it out?

Won't matter to Obama, it's too late for it to hurt him. I'm pretty sure it was designed that way.
Now if some of the brighter ones will wake up, perhaps there is still a chance to change things in 2016.

[Occam's Banana]

HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA! My only regret is that I cannot see the many faces of Obama supporters when the realize what has happened to them. A lot of young people are getting an education early.

Although it's not about the Obamacare tax penalty, you can already get a glimpse of some of those faces ...

h/t Bob Murphy: http://consultingbyrpm.com/blog/2015/01/potpourri-254.html

This story has been making the rounds: Apparently Harvard professors are upset (http://www.bloombergview.com/articles/2015-01-05/whining-harvard-professors-discover-obamacare) at the consequences of ObamaCare.

Whining Harvard Professors Discover Obamacare
http://www.bloombergview.com/articles/2015-01-05/whining-harvard-professors-discover-obamacare
Megan McArdle (05 January 2015)

"Deplorable, deeply regressive, a sign of the corporatization of the university." That's what Harvard Classics professor Richard F. Thomas calls the changes in Harvard's health plan, which have a large number of the faculty up in arms.

Are Harvard professors being forced onto Medicaid? Has their employer denied coverage for cancer treatment? Do they need to sign a corporate loyalty oath in order to access health insurance? Not exactly. But copayments are being raised and deductibles altered, making their plan ... well, actually, their plan is still extraordinarily generous by any standard [...]

The deepest irony is, of course, that Harvard professors helped to design Obamacare. And Obamacare is the reason that these changes are probably necessary.

The culprit is the "Cadillac Tax," the hefty excise tax on high-cost plans. The purpose of that tax is to hold down health-care costs, by making it much more expensive for employers to offer the kind of gold-plated benefit plans that shield consumers from virtually all the costs of their health-care decisions.

[... more at link: http://www.bloombergview.com/articles/2015-01-05/whining-harvard-professors-discover-obamacare ...]

[GunnyFreedom]

I am one of them. I can't afford insurance. I can't afford the PPACA. I can't afford the penalty. I will be paying my taxes, I will not be paying the PPACA penalty. The SWATters know where I'm at. (Racks my charging handle)

[willwash]

Someone should leave line 61 blank, citing the 5th amendment right not to be compelled to incriminate oneself

[Peace Piper]

Now that the Republicans hold the Senate and the House they will begin to repeal it, right? Any time now... Let's hold our breath! Maybe THAT will help?

What an absolute farce and disgrace the entire town of DC is now. How can anyone of those frauds look in the mirror anymore?

Obamacare: The biggest screwjob to happen to the citizens since 1913. And they're going to roll over - AGAIN. From Rebels to Slaves in a hundred years.

[milgram]

One of the Healthcare Sharing Ministries should offer a no cost "Livin' on a Prayer" plan.

[DamianTV]

Yeah, I wont be paying EITHER.

[GunnyFreedom]

One of the Healthcare Sharing Ministries should offer a no cost "Livin' on a Prayer" plan.

This plan would not provide maternity care to single men. Therefore it would not qualify under the 'law.'

[GunnyFreedom]

ΜΟΛΟΝ ΛΑΒΕ!!

http://imagizer.imageshack.us/v2/150x100q90/441/dsc0194fk.jpg (http://imageshack.com/f/c9dsc0194fkj)

[Anti Federalist]

Someone should leave line 61 blank, citing the 5th amendment right not to be compelled to incriminate oneself

B. Contention: Taxpayers do not have to file returns or provide financial information because of the protection against self-incrimination found in the Fifth Amendment.

Some argue that taxpayers may refuse to file federal income tax returns, or may submit tax returns on which they refuse to provide any financial information, because they believe that their Fifth Amendment privilege against self-incrimination will be violated.

The Law: There is no constitutional right to refuse to file an income tax return on the ground that it violates the Fifth Amendment privilege against self-incrimination. In United States v. Sullivan, 274 U.S. 259, 264 (1927), the U.S. Supreme Court stated that the taxpayer "could not draw a conjurer's circle around the whole matter by his own declaration that to write any word upon the government blank would bring him into danger of the law." The failure to comply with the filing and reporting requirements of the federal tax laws will not be excused based upon blanket assertions of the constitutional privilege against compelled self-incrimination under the Fifth Amendment.

http://www.irs.gov/Businesses/Small-Businesses-&-Self-Employed/Anti-Tax-Law-Evasion-Schemes-Law-and-Arguments-Section-IV

Now, pay up, slave, and don't give us any more shit about your "rights".

[Koz]

My cousin is just filing with one of those online services, and he said all he had to do was check the box yes. There was no verification requirement.

[willwash]

B. Contention: Taxpayers do not have to file returns or provide financial information because of the protection against self-incrimination found in the Fifth Amendment.

Some argue that taxpayers may refuse to file federal income tax returns, or may submit tax returns on which they refuse to provide any financial information, because they believe that their Fifth Amendment privilege against self-incrimination will be violated.

The Law: There is no constitutional right to refuse to file an income tax return on the ground that it violates the Fifth Amendment privilege against self-incrimination. In United States v. Sullivan, 274 U.S. 259, 264 (1927), the U.S. Supreme Court stated that the taxpayer "could not draw a conjurer's circle around the whole matter by his own declaration that to write any word upon the government blank would bring him into danger of the law." The failure to comply with the filing and reporting requirements of the federal tax laws will not be excused based upon blanket assertions of the constitutional privilege against compelled self-incrimination under the Fifth Amendment.

http://www.irs.gov/Businesses/Small-Businesses-&-Self-Employed/Anti-Tax-Law-Evasion-Schemes-Law-and-Arguments-Section-IV

Now, pay up, slave, and don't give us any more shit about your "rights".

But that ruling only applies to declaration of all income earned and payment of the appropriate amount of taxes based on that income. Asking whether someone has health insurance is, arguably, a whole 'nother ball of wax. I wouldn't be surprised to see something like this come up in the courts...not saying it'll go anywhere good, but someone might try.

[phill4paul]

Not me. I don't file. I'm a conscientious objector.

[ghengis86]

My cousin is just filing with one of those online services, and he said all he had to do was check the box yes. There was no verification requirement.

They don't need verification. If you have insurance, there is an insurance plan number associated with your social security number as reported by the provider of the insurance to the IRS. Simple cross reference by the IRS of SSNs that have filed tax returns against SSNs with an insurance plan number as filed by the insurance provider. A-B = C, list of SSNs without an approved insurance plan. Cross list C with SSNs appearing on newly created form 1095A. C-D = E, list of SSNs who filed tax returns and didn't have an approved insurance plan and did not file for a tax/penalty/fine exemption.
Now they levy their pound of flesh on list E.

But wait, there's more!

Cross list E against the unchecked box on line 61 of form 1040. E-F= list G, all the SSNs that claimed they had an approved insurance plan, but did not in fact have an approved plan or file an exemption. List G gets the fine + charge of defrauding the IRS for lying on their 1040! Now the IRS can really put the screws to the serfs!

See how easy that is? I can do it in Excel in minutes!

[Anti Federalist]

But that ruling only applies to declaration of all income earned and payment of the appropriate amount of taxes based on that income. Asking whether someone has health insurance is, arguably, a whole 'nother ball of wax. I wouldn't be surprised to see something like this come up in the courts...not saying it'll go anywhere good, but someone might try.

No, it won't, but, it would be nice to see someone try.

If for nothing else but to drive the truth home yet again:

Justice and your rights, will not be found in a government court.

[ghengis86]

ΜΟΛΟΝ ΛΑΒΕ!!

http://imagizer.imageshack.us/v2/150x100q90/441/dsc0194fk.jpg (http://imageshack.com/f/c9dsc0194fkj)

I'd like to have a few extra magazines of .308 too!

[Anti Federalist]

Big Data Freedom.


They don't need verification. If you have insurance, there is an insurance plan number associated with your social security number as reported by the provider of the insurance to the IRS. Simple cross reference by the IRS of SSNs that have filed tax returns against SSNs with an insurance plan number as filed by the insurance provider. A-B = C, list of SSNs without an approved insurance plan. Cross list C with SSNs appearing on newly created form 1095A. C-D = E, list of SSNs who filed tax returns and didn't have an approved insurance plan and did not file for a tax/penalty/fine exemption.
Now they levy their pound of flesh on list E.

But wait, there's more!

Cross list E against the unchecked box on line 61 of form 1040. E-F= list G, all the SSNs that claimed they had an approved insurance plan, but did not in fact have an approved plan or file an exemption. List G gets the fine + charge of defrauding the IRS for lying on their 1040! Now the IRS can really put the screws to the serfs!

See how easy that is? I can do it in Excel in minutes!

[Slave Mentality]

Not me. I don't file. I'm a conscientious objector.

Year 4. Probably fucked, but it is the only way I can say that I don't support this shit at all. I am tired of blood on my hands that I didn't put there.

[ghengis86]

Big Data Freedom.

Yes, but more. The state leverages the businesses - those in cahoots like the insurance companies, mega-corps, anyone with a big enough lobby, and those who are just trying to stay afloat (think small business) - to enforce Big Data Freedumb, through W-2, I-9's, withholding, prepayments, etc etc.

So you want us to bail you out, guarantee profits or subsidize losses? Demand an SSN of your customers before you provide a service or product. Want to employ a few machinists for you shop, hire a few salesmen, sell your new gadget? We will need SSNs and Tax ID numbers in order for you to proceed.

See how simple it is when you can bribe, convince, coerce and threaten others to rat out the serfs? The entire system is designed to assimilate each and every one of you and get your family, friends and acquaintances to turn you in for fear of reprisal from the state. And every now and then a sheep is trotted out and racked, disemboweled and decapitated (here's looking at you AF Wallace!) to keep the flock in line, 'educating' the young lambs as to the fate they will meet for going against the state.

All the while, the sheep outnumber the wolves 10,000 to 1, and could trample the wolves into oblivion if they really, truly wanted.

SMGDH. Tyranny by design. What was the term again for the "head Jews" that the nazis put into positions of 'power' to round up and police the other Jews? Juden rat? I forget. But that's Big Data Freedumb; the state gets the sheep to report on the flock. No need to keep tabs on them all; the big rams and ewes will point out the next feast.

[phill4paul]

Justice and your rights, will not be found in a government court.

Which is why I will not subject myself to one. I'm done.

[phill4paul]

Year 4. Probably fucked, but it is the only way I can say that I don't support this shit at all. I am tired of blood on my hands that I didn't put there.

What are they gonna do to me. Take my Social Security? Fuck 'em if that is what it takes to be clear of conscience then good riddance.

[Dianne]

Face it ... Obamacare was designed to snuff out any remaining savings the middle class has left. The really poor don't qualify for Obamacare. You have to have a job making at least 12k per year (around there), to get a taxpayer subsidy to help with premiums and somehow that prick in the White House and his GOP henchmen believe if you do make 12K per year you can afford the $6,000. deductible before Obamacare even kicks in. If Obamacare doesn't call upon the people of the U.S. to revolt and stand up against this tyranical government .... nothing will !! It's game over.

[ghengis86]

Face it ... Obamacare was designed to snuff out any remaining savings the middle class has left. The really poor don't qualify for Obamacare. You have to have a job making at least 12k per year (around there), to get a taxpayer subsidy to help with premiums and somehow that prick in the White House and his GOP henchmen believe if you do make 12K per year you can afford the $6,000. deductible before Obamacare even kicks in. If Obamacare doesn't call upon the people of the U.S. to revolt and stand up against this tyranical government .... nothing will !! It's game over.

The game has been over for quit some time.

Time for a reset

[phill4paul]

Fortunately, I think they are shuffling their hands into one....

http://i.imgur.com/Q7I7t.jpg

[PierzStyx]

"We’re not here to have a goal to get a certain fee income or to make this difficult for folks,” he said. “We want to get people insured and have the peace of mind of health insurance.” And because you refuse to buy into one of the biggest examples of corporate welfare ever, then we're going to punish you by stealing more money from you who we already acknowledge as being most likely a member of the lower class who has almost no money to begin with. Disobey your corporate masters and be punished.

[oyarde]

LOL

[morfeeis]

Face it ... Obamacare was designed to snuff out any remaining savings the middle class has left. The really poor don't qualify for Obamacare. You have to have a job making at least 12k per year (around there), to get a taxpayer subsidy to help with premiums and somehow that prick in the White House and his GOP henchmen believe if you do make 12K per year you can afford the $6,000. deductible before Obamacare even kicks in. If Obamacare doesn't call upon the people of the U.S. to revolt and stand up against this tyranical government .... nothing will !! It's game over.

The people are to busy having fun and watching the idiot box. I have all but given up hope, if it were not for this site i would be willing to bet that 87.999989725346% of the people in this country were as dumb as a box of broken hammers....

[angelatc]

My cousin is just filing with one of those online services, and he said all he had to do was check the box yes. There was no verification requirement.

But that is supposed to change next year.

[Czolgosz]

year 3.

[angelatc]

They don't need verification. If you have insurance, there is an insurance plan number associated with your social security number as reported by the provider of the insurance to the IRS.

No, next year employers, private insurers and MedicAid will also be required to issue the same form that the people in the marketplace are getting this year. (http://apps.irs.gov/app/picklist/list/formsPublications.html;jsessionid=acCslVLPtj9-9306TTe0ow__?value=1095&criteria=formNumber&submitSearch=Find)

[Acala]

Face it ... Obamacare was designed to snuff out any remaining savings the middle class has left. The really poor don't qualify for Obamacare. You have to have a job making at least 12k per year (around there), to get a taxpayer subsidy to help with premiums and somehow that prick in the White House and his GOP henchmen believe if you do make 12K per year you can afford the $6,000. deductible before Obamacare even kicks in. If Obamacare doesn't call upon the people of the U.S. to revolt and stand up against this tyranical government .... nothing will !! It's game over.

What savings? The American middle class has virtually no savings to begin with.

[DamianTV]

Thanks Obamacare: This Is What Americans Spent The Most Money On In Q4 (http://www.zerohedge.com/news/2015-01-30/thanks-obamacare-what-americans-spent-most-money-q4)
http://www.zerohedge.com/sites/default/files/images/user5/imageroot/2015/01-overflow/Q4%20spending%20GDP.jpg

[TommyJeff]

Now that the Republicans hold the Senate and the House they will begin to repeal it, right?

This joke is so funny, you should do stand-up

[pcosmar]

Not much incentive to become a taxpayer.

[Peace Piper]

This joke is so funny, you should do stand-up

I'm trying to get Keith to tour with me.


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ee6jdW-T3gs

Isn't it ironic that Olbermann's criticism was more on target and hard hitting than *any* Republicans?

But those R's are gonna repeal it any day, I'm telling you. They promised.



The health insurance mandate in the 2010 Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act, also known as Obamacare, is an idea hatched in 1989 by Stuart M. Butler at The Heritage Foundation in a publication titled "Assuring Affordable Health Care for All Americans".[23] This was also the model for Mitt Romney's health care plan in Massachusetts
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Heritage_Foundation#Policy_influence



Assuring Affordable Health Care for All Americans
By Stuart M. Butler, Heritage Foundation October 1, 1989

5-2) Mandate all households to obtain adequate insurance. Many states now require passengers in automobiles to wear seatbelts for their own protection. Many others require anybody driving a car to have liability insurance. But neither the federal government nor any state requires all households to protect themselves from the potentially catastrophic costs of a serious accident or illness. Under the Heritage plan, there would be such a requirement.

This mandate is based on two important principles. First, that health care protection is a responsibility of individuals, not businesses. Thus to the extent that anybody should be required to provide coverage to a family, the household mandate assumes that it is the family that carries the first responsibility. Second, it assumes that there is an implicit contract between households and society, based on the notion that health insurance is not like other forms of insurance protection...
http://www.heritage.org/research/lecture/assuring-affordable-health-care-for-all-americans