Originally published December 26 2013
Missouri school district facing $150,000 cost increase over Obamacare
by J. D. Heyes
(NaturalNews) Obamacare's minimal coverage requirements, which are substantially raising the cost of premiums, aren't just hurting the private sector, but they are hitting corporations and the public sector as well.
In Missouri, for instance, officials at a public school district have learned recently that the Affordable Care Act's requirements will force them to spend an additional $150,000 annually in taxpayer funds, just to comply with the law.
As reported by ABC affiliate KMIZ, Jefferson City Public Schools in the state capital are the latest public-sector institution to be hit with the extreme new expenditure. Officials with the school district realized it when they told school board members that they would also have to cover insurance costs for substitute teachers.
A reporter told the news anchors that the added expense wasn't a complete surprise, but nonetheless:
They knew it was coming, they just didn't exactly know how they were going to handle it. Small businesses around the nation have seen it coming, and they've been wondering how they will accommodate the Affordable Care Act. Just like them, the district also is asking that question. The district could limit substitutes to 28 hours per week, or face paying six thousand dollars per person for health benefits for at least 25 individuals who are on the rolls and qualify. If they don't comply with the new federal law, the district would be fined millions of dollars by the federal government. While district officials didn't go as far as saying the federal government is hurting more than helping, I was told the $150,000 dollar cost is about the same cost as three teachers in the district, to put it into perspective.
Schools all over the country are being forced to cut back, pay more
So, the party that constantly whines about overcrowded classrooms passed a law that is going to cost this school district - and others, no doubt - teachers.
Other school districts around the country are being hurt by the law as well:
-- The Indianapolis Star reports that schools around the state are being hurt financially by Obamacare.
We cannot go out and raise the price of our product to assist us covering this. We would have to go to the taxpayers and ask for some type of increase, and I just don't see that happening," Les Huddle, superintendent of the Lafayette School Corp., told the paper. He added that approximately 600 non-certified employees in more than 150 schools have had their hours reduced to meet the federal definition of part-time.
The Shelbyville Central School System likewise is cutting back the hours of about 100 of its instructional aides as well as some substitute teachers, bus drivers and coaches.
-- Also, according to the Heartland Institute, the law's mandates lead schools to fire employees, reduce employee hours and otherwise slash education spending.
"Since most of [school districts'] budget is people, it is likely that, absent special federal or state funding, there will be some cutbacks. The exact magnitude will be driven by the size of the cost increases - something that we will not know until they unfold over the next few years," said Michael Shires, a professor of public finance at Pepperdine University.
"One of the lessons the current federal fiscal crisis and the deficits in most states has taught us is that there really are limits to the resources available to public budgets. So, as the costs per employee rise, that money has to come from somewhere. So whether it is through larger class sizes, a smaller number of aides and support staff, or fewer books and other materials, there will likely be a decline in resources in the classrooms," he added.
Obama as Robin Hood
In fact, Obamacare is hitting taxpayers in their pocketbooks on many levels. Every government entity that is financed through tax dollars must pay more to comply with the law, or face huge fines (so they pay either way).
Furthermore, Obamacare dramatically expands Medicaid eligibility, costing taxpayers more in subsidies.
Besides the draconian nature of the law - the government deciding what health coverage you must have and then forcing you to purchase it - Obamacare will become the biggest wealth redistribution program in the history of the country.
Sources:
http://www.weeklystandard.com
http://www.youtube.com
http://www.indystar.com
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