Daily PUMA Column - Commentary by Alessandro Machi

Tuesday, June 27, 2017

Senate 2017 HealthCare Bill Proposal Ignores the 300 billion dollars in Yearly Consumer Interest Rate Payments on Credit Card and Student Loan Debt as a Source to Help Fund Healthcare for the Poor.

It seems that both parties in Congress are content and satisfied that over 50 million Americans have either or both credit card and Student Loan Debt totaling 2.2 trillion dollars.  Each year, these 50 million Americans, most of them middle class to very poor, pay at least 300 billion dollars in Interest rate charges on their Credit Card and Student Loan Debts.

There is also a interest rate charge on old debt called Zombie debt that may total billions of dollars a year in interest payments on debt that never goes away.

DailyPUMA asks one simple question, how much of that 300 billion dollars a year in interest rate payments would Congress need to "envelop," aka balance out MediCAID and the 2017 Healthcare Bill?  The Republicans are chortling over the 300 billion dollars saved from MediCAID over the next ten years. 
There is something blatantly and obtusely insane in creating 300 billion dollars in cuts to MediCAID over a ten year time period which will cause economic peril to millions of Americans, while t those same Republican politicians are perfectly comfortable with the 300 billion dollars a year that Americans are paying on their outstanding credit card and student loan debt, debt they may never be able to pay off even as they pay three times the amount of the debt in ongoing interest rate charges.
What if 150 billion dollars of that 300 billion dollars per year in consumer interest rate payments would remove the MediCAID cuts to the elderly and disabled and allow the 2017 HealthCare Program to break even? 

How come Congress never declares its own interest paying citziens forever trapped in debt, as being in a crisis situation?  If Congress annexed 150 billion dollars of the 300 billion in interest rate payments made by consumers to their credit card and student loans, that would be the equivalent of 750 dollars per each of the 22 million insured who apparently will lose their insurance.

Now, instead of an 800 billion dollar tax cut for the wealthy, what if that were reduced to 300 billion dollars over the next several years. That extra 500 billion dollars could be apportioned towards MediCAID over the next several years. Perhaps that increases the 22 million uninsured to $1,250 to $1,500 dollars a year in monies generated by the consumer themselves. What if the government matched that amount. Now we are up to $2,500 to $3,000 dollars per year of premium coverage above and beyond whatever premiums are then charged for Healthcare. 

Isn't apportioning half of the 300 billion dollars in yearly interest rate charges that consumers pay to the Banks better spent going towards resolving the health care crisis  than further impoverishing more and more Americans?

Keep in mind that MediCAID expansion can actually cut healthcare costs since home health care, a key component of MediCAID. is always cheaper than any other type of health care. 

So when does the 2017 Congress declare Healthcare Coverage enough of an emergency and priority that they raid half of the 300 billion dollars a year in Consumer Interest Rate Payments and then match it? Can Americans trust Congress to watch out for them when all Credit card and Student Interest Rate Charges, no matter how high, are deemed  untouchable and more important than the souls who make the payments on that debt?


Please consider signing the Debt Neutrality Petition by clicking here.

1 comment:

Alessandro Machi said...

If it wasn't for you and Bob Harrison, I'd have no commenters.

Best Quality VHS to Digital Transfers

Best Quality VHS to Digital Transfers
Serious Customers Welcome.

Share Gadget

10,000 Dollar Grant! Another Great Find from FABULOUSLY40.com

10,000 Dollar Grant! Another Great Find from FABULOUSLY40.com
Would this be a good way to win funds for Louisa's Law ?