Joseph D. Bosh – 5/21/09

This page was last updated on June 1, 2009.

A more affordable health-care system; Joseph D. Bosh; Beaver County Times; May 21, 2009.

I suspect Mr. Bosh is related to Daniel A. Bosh, also of Baden. I say that because last year Daniel A. Bosh (a USW representative) wrote a letter entitled “Put America on Medicare” and the wording in both letters is similar. If Joseph Bosh is related to Daniel Bosh, I would not be surprised to learn the letter was “laundered” through Joseph Bosh so Daniel Bosh could avoid being identified as a USW representative. You see, when he writes letters supporting USW positions, Mr. Bosh doesn’t disclose his affiliation with the USW, and the USW supports HR 676. There could be another reason too. Earlier this year Daniel Bosh attempted to rebut a letter of mine on a different topic. Perhaps Daniel Bosh didn’t want people to get the idea his response was personal. Then again, I could be all wet.

Below is a detailed critique of the subject letter.

“The May 14 letter ‘Let liberty be basis of health-care bill’ concerning HR 676 completely missed the point of the bill.”

[RWC] Not so; I completely understand the agendas (some well-intentioned, some not) behind HR 676 and I expected responses like Mr. Bosh’s. That’s why I ended my letter with, “If HR 676 supporters insist their taxpayer-funded, government-run healthcare monopoly must be forced on us, doesn’t that tell us a lot?”

Please read my paper entitled “Healthcare.”

“The writer didn’t take into account the reason for our failing system: private insurance companies, which waste a third of the money paid in premiums on administrative, billing, legal, actuarial, marketing, loss prevention (claims denial) and other business-related costs unrelated to patients’ health.”

[RWC] Note there’s no mention of government’s long-term interference in the healthcare market. Instead, the problem is “private insurance companies.”

“A more efficient, affordable system would be one in which money is focused on financing our private health-care system, not paying business expenses.”

[RWC] Mr. Bosh implies “administrative … and other business-related costs” won’t be in a government-run healthcare monopoly. Not so. For example, all systems employ “loss prevention (claims denial)” in an attempt to contain costs. Medicare does that now and would have to do so under HR 676 for there to be any hope costs/taxes wouldn’t spiral further out of control. Even marketing costs would likely remain. How often do we see ads for this or that government program?

Using Mr. Bosh’s logic, why wouldn’t we “HR 676” food production/distribution, housing, et cetera.

We have the equivalent of HR 676 for public education, yet its price increases continuously outpace the rate of inflation.

“HR 676, which simply expands and improves Medicare so that everyone is covered for all medically necessary treatment, would only work as a government program since only the government can efficiently administer it.”

[RWC] “Only government can do it” has become a mantra with President Obama’s election.

“The program would replace insurance premiums with a small payroll tax to be paid by each individual and matched by his/her employer.”

[RWC] Hmm, when did at least 9.5% of your gross income become “a small payroll tax?” This sounds like something a college student without a job would write.

“Under this system, a family making $50,000 annually would pay $2,375 per year, which the employer would match, bringing the total cost to $4,750, instead of the $14,000 it costs for decent family coverage through private insurance.”

[RWC] Just as with Socialist Security and Medicare today, the employee pays the whole tax; we just don’t see it on our paystubs. The myth of the employer contribution is accounting sleight of hand required by the feds to hide the magnitude of these taxes, currently 15.3%. As per Mr. Bosh’s letter, this would rise to at least 21.9% with HR 676. As a reminder, Socialist Security started at 2% on a max of $3,000. SS taxes are now 12.4% on a max of $106,800, and the max increases every year by law. There is no max for Medicare.

“Insurance companies are good for many things. Health-care financing isn’t one of them, especially when a simpler, more affordable alternative exists.”

[RWC] Does anyone want to bet insurance companies would be OK for healthcare if they were government-owned and/or employed a large number of union members? Then again, for all I know the insurance companies do employ a lot of union members.