83% of US doctors considering quitting because of Obamacare

[kochman]

Do sin taxes actually have a demonstrated impact on alcohol addiction? There are certainly enough counties with high taxes on alcohol that the data should be available to you, if you care to make the case.

I don't know, and am not spending the time to look into, though I am sure you can find that data (it would be hard to rule out other factors though), but they at least raise revenue to deal with the repercussions (drink drivings, domestic violence, etc).

 

[LucyDuke]

Good understanding of poverty.

 

[Core Imposter]

Sin taxes are good. You may consider them regressive, but perhaps they should be.
Overwhelmingly, the ones with addictions that cause severe problems are the lower socio-economic... cause or effect, you decide, not here to argue that.

If we make alcohol harder for them to afford, is that a bad thing?

Also, the amount of trouble/expenses caused by alcohol related incidents, which the state often flips the tab for, justify it as well... including increased health care costs.

Alcohol, cigarettes, dip, etc... they all have heavy taxes applied. Adding 9% is just adding to what was already there.

Don't forget the other sin taxes. Gas taxes, to make us drive less. Carbon taxes, to curb flatulence, tanning taxes, to make us whiter, and sales taxes, to stamp out unnecessary commerce.

 

[aimeeandbeatles]

If we make alcohol harder for them to afford, is that a bad thing?

It actually makes the lower-income people scrape more and not buy stuff they actually need because they want their alcohol or cigarettes or what have you

This is true from my experience

 

[History_Buff]

It actually makes the lower-income people scrape more and not buy stuff they actually need because they want their alcohol or cigarettes or what have you

This is true from my experience

Pretty much this.

Also, is it really fair to artificially deny a group of people a luxury good because you think you can handle it and they can't?

 

[Cutlass]

Pretty much this.

Also, is it really fair to artificially deny a group of people a luxury good because you think you can handle it and they can't?

Well, the intent is to cut down on the usage of something without outlawing it. And up to a point it works. There's just outside limits on how much it works. Cigarette smoking is way down in the US, and costs due to taxes is a big part of that.

 

[History_Buff]

You guys have indoor smoking bans yet?

 

[Oerdin]

BTW WRT the OP Politifact debunked the claim as completely false.

http://www.politifact.com/truth-o-m...wmaker-jeff-duncan-repeats-survey-finding-83/

 

[AlpsStranger]

I am absolutely confident that this will not happen. Not even 2% of doctors will quit.

This will all seem quite silly in twenty years.

 

[Ziggy Stardust]

BTW WRT the OP Politifact debunked the claim as completely false.

http://www.politifact.com/truth-o-m...wmaker-jeff-duncan-repeats-survey-finding-83/

Pah! Facts! Who needs facts? The thread starter already has displayed a healthy distrust of this left-wing concept.

Who needs facts when you can point at a high percentage re-affirming your rock-solid convictions. Unsupported rock solid convictions, now there's a patriotic Republican concept.

 

[LucyDuke]

You guys have indoor smoking bans yet?

In most places. Like all our other stuff it's state by state.





Those are all statewide, there are lots and lots of local restrictions too.

I am absolutely confident that this will not happen. Not even 2% of doctors will quit.

This will all seem quite silly in twenty years.

Seems silly already to most of us.

 

[kochman]

That US map showing smoking bans is pretty out dated...

 

[kochman]

It actually makes the lower-income people scrape more and not buy stuff they actually need because they want their alcohol or cigarettes or what have you

This is true from my experience

Your anecdote is impressive, I'm sure.

What happens, I've seen, is people on food stamps are forced to use their cash to buy it... and they do... but they are making a very conscious choice.
It's a free country, you can't stop people from making bad decisions... so, even if, which we don't know, it doesn't cut down the rate of abuse, it helps pay for it.

But seriously, if alcohol was cheaper (the sin tax is actually HUGE, most people don't realize this) due to being untaxed, do you think abuse would be better or worse?

 

[Cutlass]

BTW WRT the OP Politifact debunked the claim as completely false.

http://www.politifact.com/truth-o-m...wmaker-jeff-duncan-repeats-survey-finding-83/

Not news, as I pointed out way back on the first page of the thread, news agencies were not reporting the story. Hell, even Fox was not reporting the story. Therefor obviously it wasn't a story.

 

[History_Buff]

In most places. Like all our other stuff it's state by state.

Oh The South. What a fine tradition of backwardness you have. Reminds me of Alberta.

 

[LucyDuke]

That US map showing smoking bans is pretty out dated...

I invite your corrections.

 

[caketastydelish]

This question is not rhetorical, but asked out of genuine curiosity:

Do countries that have socialized medicine (which by the way, is not exactly what this is) such as England, Canada, Sweden have a shortage of doctors?

Because if not, then why would this create a shortage of doctors here?

 

[History_Buff]

Do countries that have socialized medicine (which by the way, is not exactly what this is) such as England, Canada, Sweden have a shortage of doctors?

In Canada we have something of a shortage of GPs and Family Docs, and the North has a more severe shortage, but it's not really a symptom of the health care system as far as I can tell. It's more that we just don't have too many people finishing their medical practicums. I suspect it's more to do with the difficulty of the degree and accreditation process (which is almost entirely removed from the government) than it is the Social Medicine program. We used to have a lot of Docs get their degrees here then head to the States, but those days seem to have passed.

We're also making great strides by using RNs to do more of the general stuff. They're easily qualified to do it, and there's a lot more of them.

Also, some provinces do better than others (since health care is a provincial jurisdiction). Alberta tends to have issues with these sorts of things as the electorate has something of a hate-on for the public service and government in general. We're the Texas of Canada.

 

[JollyRoger]

We're the Texas of Canada.

So that would make you roughly Massachusetts?

 

[History_Buff]

So that would make you roughly Massachusetts?

More like a Colorado, but with Oil.