R WE STUPIT?

Does taxing the pharmaceutical companies an extra $22 billion and medical device manufacturers’ an extra $19 billion really make healthcare more affordable? Do we think Pfizer just says “oh well, those profit margins were nice while had ‘em”? Or do they do what any company does when they are hit with new costs- Raise prices!

Companies need to make X% profit to stay in business. Look at gas, if the price of oil goes up the price of gas goes up, because oil costs the companies money to obtain, it is a “cost”. Taxes are “costs” too. If we hit up Exxon for more tax $$$ then they will be forced to raise the price at the pump to recoup that “cost”, and maintain a profit margin of X%. Tobacco is a perfect example- When the tobacco industry was sued and forced to pay out huge amounts of dough in settlements they were forced to either raise their prices drastically or close up shop (too bad they chose option a).

Why do nations impose tariffs on imported goods? The people exporting those goods to the nation have to tack that money onto the price paid by the consumer, thus creating an advantage in the price category for the domestic producers of similar goods. So is it really a stretch to assert that those in control of Washington now want to raise the cost of private healthcare in order to secure an advantage for the “public option”, eventually doing away with the private sector altogether?

You, the end user, the consumer, you pay. Not the big corporations, not the share-holders of the corporations, not the insurance companies, not the “rich”, but you. That is the way it has always been, the way it will always be. One way or another, the “Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act” will cost you in the long run.

See the last line of the AP article- “Resolving these policy issues would be a historic accomplishment for Democrats. But the bill could still leave consumers feeling a little cheated.”

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/us_health_care_overhaul