Intro: Californian Health-Care Uber Alles?
The author makes good points here. Unfortunately, the media and the people who read most media won't be moved to action until the snake has consumed them up to their necks. And right now, as serious as the situation is in California; it ain't CT, IL or NJ. So we ignore nascent problems to place blame on the ones in crisis mode. Just in Time Media Reporting?
One would think that having been alerted to the risks descending upon our Republic that it would move other states more aggressively to prevent, or at least minimize their own real and looming problems. Unfortunately that is not the case, at least as far as the majority of the public is concerned. That is in no small part because the crises in the 3 states mentioned above are quickly co-opted in nonsensical debates and button pushing rhetoric by the media.
We've taken the liberty of including a graphic in the story below to give a state by state homeland security type color ranking. -Soren K.
"California Would Go Bankrupt With Single-Payer Health Care"
Mark my words, California will pass single-payer healthcare in 2018. The powerful labor union, the California Nurses Association (CNA) wants this and its is the epitome of political thuggery. Union members are holding demonstrations in the Capitol and vowing to primary Democratic legislators who don't support their efforts for a state-run health care system. Its tactics however, are alienating other members of the progressive coalition backing state-run health care. The CNA has over 100,000 members, most of whom were strong supporters of Senator Bernie Sanders' Presidential run. The CNA sees this issue as an opportunity to take over the California Democratic Party and push it further leftwards from Governor Brown. It sees California as a truly "independent" state and the state-run health care program as the only way to balance an Obamacare repeal. Not too many people publicly oppose the CNA's proposal because it will be funded with an additional 15% payroll tax-- and opponents know that's crazy.
California has some of the highest housing costs in the nation because of NIMBY opposition and environmental regulations. It's one of the hardest states in which to create a business. Income taxes are among the highest in the nation. Gas taxes are the highest in the nation. Water costs are among the highest in the nation. Adding a 15% payroll tax surcharge, to an already highly-taxed populace, would drive millions of people away from the Golden State.
With a median family income of $5500/month, that's an additional payroll tax of $825/month. The CNA argument is that the new payroll tax would replace the insurance costs employers and individual currently. You have to ask yourself if letting California politicians run health care is going to increase or decrease costs. California politicians led us into the pension crisis. California politicians stole money, from the highway trust fund, diverted it from road and highway repair, the passed a HIGHER gas tax. California politicians ruined what was the envy of the rest of our country; the California university system If single-payer passes (it won't), the backlash against illegal immigrants will skyrocket as they flood the doctors' offices and emergency rooms. Republican legislators are keeping quiet about this idea because they are in a permanent super-minority in the Legislature. They want the Democrats to own this issue because they know it will lead to the eventual bankruptcy of the state. Democratic legislators are walking a fine line with this issue. They may publicly talk about (what they perceive to be) a need for state-run health care but they know they would be tarred and feathered is they passed a tax to pay for it. If 100,000 union members, can pressure 80/120 legislators and a liberal Governor, to pass this legislation, which affects 36 million legal and 4-5 million illegal Californians, I'll be astounded. It COULD happen though
EDIT - Graphic - Fiscal assessment via Mercatus Center at George Mason University.
As Zerohedge notes, kind of similar to the electoral map too.
Maybe it's just coincidence...then again, maybe promising every entitlement under the sun to your residents without a clue as to how to finance those entitlements is a really bad idea over the long term...just a thought. full story here
Almost what the author is implying.
Those crises states are now more likely to generate pollsters calling your CA home asking you:"Do you think CA is worse than CT or worse than IL?.. and "Do you think your Governor should prevent illegal immigration from bankrupt states like IL entering into CA?". Many states think the problem is not in their state as a result. Here the author raises awareness that CA is actually considering pressing its luck in complete ignorance of the fiscal situation all states face.
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