Democrats benefit from Obamacare
Gracynn Malone
POLS101
Paper 1: Question 3
The Affordable Care Act “Obamacare” was signed into law to reform the health care industry by President Barack Obama on March 23, 2010 and upheld by the Supreme Court on June 28, 2012. Obamacare’s goal was to give more Americans access to affordable, quality health insurance and to reduce the growth in health care spending in the U.S (Obamacare). But which political party benefits more from the act? In the long run, Democrats benefit from the Affordable Care Act, not Republicans. This is because; Republicans are typically business owners and therefore would not benefit from Obamacare. Another reason that Democrats would benefit more is; Democratic incumbents are more likely to get reelected for their office. Also, the Affordable Care Act provides another step towards a single payer system that most Democrats desire.
According to an online survey conducted by the National Small Business Association, 39% of business owners are Republicans and 22% of business owners are Democrats (Hoover). The Affordable Care Act will impose new health coverage costs, the employer mandate, and new taxes on all businesses (Senger). Obamacare’s wide variety of benefit and coverage mandates, along with new taxes, fees and penalties, will increase the cost of businesses providing coverage. Obamacare’s employer mandate forces employers with more than 50 full-time employees provide health insurance or pay a penalty of $2,000 per employee (Senger). This causes businesses to hire part-time employees because they would not be penalized for not providing health care to part-time employees (Senger). The Affordable Care Act increases the Medicare payroll tax by 0.9% and creates a new 3.8% Medicare surtax on unearned income. Business owners create a lot of jobs, and higher taxes on them will slow job creation (Senger). Nothing about new health coverage costs, the employer mandate, and new taxes on all businesses sounds appealing to Republicans. It is
POLS101
Paper 1: Question 3
The Affordable Care Act “Obamacare” was signed into law to reform the health care industry by President Barack Obama on March 23, 2010 and upheld by the Supreme Court on June 28, 2012. Obamacare’s goal was to give more Americans access to affordable, quality health insurance and to reduce the growth in health care spending in the U.S (Obamacare). But which political party benefits more from the act? In the long run, Democrats benefit from the Affordable Care Act, not Republicans. This is because; Republicans are typically business owners and therefore would not benefit from Obamacare. Another reason that Democrats would benefit more is; Democratic incumbents are more likely to get reelected for their office. Also, the Affordable Care Act provides another step towards a single payer system that most Democrats desire.
According to an online survey conducted by the National Small Business Association, 39% of business owners are Republicans and 22% of business owners are Democrats (Hoover). The Affordable Care Act will impose new health coverage costs, the employer mandate, and new taxes on all businesses (Senger). Obamacare’s wide variety of benefit and coverage mandates, along with new taxes, fees and penalties, will increase the cost of businesses providing coverage. Obamacare’s employer mandate forces employers with more than 50 full-time employees provide health insurance or pay a penalty of $2,000 per employee (Senger). This causes businesses to hire part-time employees because they would not be penalized for not providing health care to part-time employees (Senger). The Affordable Care Act increases the Medicare payroll tax by 0.9% and creates a new 3.8% Medicare surtax on unearned income. Business owners create a lot of jobs, and higher taxes on them will slow job creation (Senger). Nothing about new health coverage costs, the employer mandate, and new taxes on all businesses sounds appealing to Republicans. It is