Going to be phased back in over 3 years. No word on amount yet. However, cost prior to elimination in 2009 cost families $1,056 and singles $528. Imagine it'll be back up to similar levels.
Imagine most would have preferred a bump to personal income tax levels (or even movement to progressive tax rates) than this, given its going to impact low income earners the most.
edit: additional details coming out from gov't indicate it might be based on income
Last edited by Ducay; 03-25-2015 at 08:27 AM.
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Going to be phased back in over 3 years. No word on amount yet. However, cost prior to elimination in 2009 cost families $1,056 and singles $528. Imagine it'll be back up to similar levels.
Imagine most would have preferred a bump to personal income tax levels (or even movement to progressive tax rates) than this, given its going to impact low income earners the most.
If they were smart they would simply add it as a line on the Alberta Income Tax form rather than run it through an elaborate system to collect the premiums, provide premium assistance and issue health care cards.
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John Oliver has covered this a few times, basically every politician fears "raising taxes" so they do it other ways which is often like this, municipal fees and fines, etc.. Which typically harms the middle class and poor the most.
I'm tired of coward politicians who won't just say, we have to raise the corp or tax on wealthy ever so slightly so we can pay for such and such. At least be honest, and have the guts to ever so slightly burden those most well off instead of going around it and screwing everyday people with hidden taxation.
This deals only with municipal violations, but its a broader issue as we all know.
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I was thinking the same thing, my family can afford a grand a year.
However! The caveat to that is that I dont want to be shelling out a grand a year if they're just going to piss it away.
I dont mind paying extra if we see the benefits of what we're paying for. I'm still young and relatively healthy and thats fine, it doesnt necessarily have to benefit me or my family directly I just want to see the benefits of increased funding.
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I would really like to see a user fee system for ER and Doctor visits implemented rather then just premiums. Waive the the fee for the elderly, infants and those receiveing recurring care (chemo). But yah as mentioned above a simple line on our tax form would be much better then whatever plan they have to unroll this.
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This is simply an indication that they will not pursue any options that arn't in the traditional playbook. They will have a $5000 a plate dinner and ask for opinions from 'all' Albertans. Then they will follow the will of the 'people'. I have a feeling that Prentice will be Redford minus the plane rides, apartments and wicked pant suit.
Adding a health tax instead of repealing the flat tax. Nice one.
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My preference is its just calculated with our income tax, its easier for people instead of forgetting to pay for example. You don't need to create a whole new government jobs program to support it, its just collected as a line item on your return.
I would prefer that this isn't just a tax that goes into general accounting, and gets used on building roads. It needs to go to health care. But at the same time, the government needs to take a harder look at the inefficiencies in the health care system
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I would really like to see a user fee system for ER and Doctor visits implemented rather then just premiums. Waive the the fee for the elderly, infants and those receiveing recurring care (chemo). But yah as mentioned above a simple line on our tax form would be much better then whatever plan they have to unroll this.
As much as I've been a fan of this idea because of the people that over use especially in the emergency room where Johnny has a boo boo.
I tend to believe that this will chase lower income people away from visiting their doctor because its an un-budgeted expense.
Some people if they have to choose between a $20.00 visitation fee and putting gas in their car so they can go to work are going to choose the latter.
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Any money coming into the provincial coffers won't go to a specific purpose, it will just go into the kitty. We will get nothing new out of this, it will just help to balance the current budget. It's to make the government look fiscally responsible for the next couple of years. I was trying to keep an open mind toward Prentice, but as of this morning I'm just expecting a continuation of the Conservative Mandate from God.
Generally speaking, I'm not even anti Conservative. I would take any tin hat change everything to protect us from the coming Jupitarian invasion majority government to get us a break from these guys, though.
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I wonder how many employers will pick up this cost initially
Previously I think many or most employers did pay for the health care premiums although it was probably fairly easy to implement because it was a flat rate for all people. With a progressive rate based on income I would think it would be much more difficult for employers to know how much to pay for each person. Regardless, I'm sure that many health care plans provided by employers will cover any new health care premiums.
As much as I've been a fan of this idea because of the people that over use especially in the emergency room where Johnny has a boo boo.
I tend to believe that this will chase lower income people away from visiting their doctor because its an un-budgeted expense.
Some people if they have to choose between a $20.00 visitation fee and putting gas in their car so they can go to work are going to choose the latter.
A 500$ yearly fee is a lot of gas. A per use fee would be much less for almost everybody, and go a long way toward curbing misuse of the system. If people would stop going to the doctor for their monthly checkup, the lesser burden on the system would save us a boatload of money. Simply exclude people under the age of 5 and over the age of 65.
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I wonder how many employers will pick up this cost initially
Probably less if they're doing it through the income tax system. Plus, the economic situation means its less likely, imo. My employer used to pay the flat one for all employees, but the combination of low oil prices (and our current wage freeze) along with how complicated it would be means I'm expecting to pay the new one myself.
Health care premiums are regressive as heck. I had to pay them back when I was poor and didn't have an employer who covered it. That $44 a month was a real punch in the gut when you're only making $1,200 or so a month.
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Alberta Healthcare premiums to return
