AGC's Trillion Reasons Why Not
- Andy Cole
- November 10, 2009
The AGC and the Builders Association sent notices to members Friday regarding last weekend's U.S. House of Representatives vote on Health Care Reform. The measure passed the House narrowly, 220-215.
The AGC opposed the $1 trillion legislation as written for a number of reasons, including:
- Employers will face an eight percent payroll tax for each employee that does not receive coverage, even if the employer offers benefits but the employee chooses a government plan
- The elimination of private insurers and the unlikelihood that the government can effectively serve as both a regulator and a participant in the health care system
- $460 billion in new taxes and $500 billion in Medicare cuts to finance the plan
- Mandates will fail to lower the cost of purchasing insurance for businesses, which will stifle economic growth at a time when the construction industry faces unemployment figures that nearly double the national average.