Obamacare Penalizes Married Couples

CHARLOTTE, N.C., Nov. 26, 2013 /Christian Newswire/ — The Affordable Care Act, also known as Obamacare, punishes married couples by making it more difficult than unmarried couples to receive subsidies. Under the ACA, the less income earned, the more money is available to individuals from the government to pay for health insurance. In many low-income communities around the nation, marriage is now the exception rather than the rule and not getting married is the major tax shelter for low- and moderate-income households with children.

Couples living together who are not married could save up to $10,000 more than a married couple under Obamacare because the health care law requires married couples to combine income and prohibits them from filing as two individuals. On the other hand, an unmarried couple living together can file as two individuals. The disadvantage is for couples who choose marriage.

Heritage Foundation reports that in order to receive a government subsidy, a married couple must earn less than $62,040. Therefore, a married couple with each spouse making $35,000 annually for a combined income of $70,000 dollars would not qualify for a healthcare subsidy. In contrast, an unmarried couple with each partner making $40,000 for a combined income of $80,000 could qualify for thousands of dollars in subsidies. Whether this disparity was intentional or not, it is extremely damaging to the social fabric of our nation.

Dr. Richard Land, president of the SES, stated, “The fact that Obamacare penalizes married couples financially is about as counterproductive to stable families and a stable society as any government policy can be. The oldest axiom in public policy is: ‘That which you tax you’ll get less of. That which you subsidize you’ll get more of.’

“By financially penalizing marriage formation and conversely subsidizing non-married family units, government is acting in a way that the New Testament calls perverse. Romans 13 says that the civil magistrate is ordained to reward those who do that which is right and penalize those who do that which is wrong! Isn’t Obamacare doing exactly the opposite?”

Land goes on to say that Christians must be active participants in the culture war — standing firm against society-damaging issues such as the breakdown of family (penalizing marriage) and abortion — both of which are components within Obamacare.

SES has been ranked No. 1 for its General Christian Apologetics Graduate Program by TheBestSchools.org’s “Top 10 Graduate Programs in Christian Apologetics.” For more information, visitwww.ses.edu.