In an effort to get to the meat of the penalty that Obamacare will impose on you, in the unlikely event that it would be possible for you to keep your insurance policy that the government (not you) deems unsatisfactory, below you will find the law as is in the Federal Register.
The penalty for not buying a government approved health insurance policy, or not buying an insurance policy at all, begins now at $95 and increases to $695 per year or 2.5% of your income by 2015, after the next presidential election.
The Joint Tax Committee prepared a summary of Obamacare that includes this discussion of the mandate:
The penalty applies to any period the individual does not maintain minimum essential coverage and is determined monthly. The penalty is assessed through the Code and accounted for as an additional amount of Federal tax owed. However, it is not subject to the enforcement provisions of subtitle F of the Code. The use of liens and seizures otherwise authorized for collection of taxes does not apply to the collection of this penalty. Non-compliance with the personal responsibility requirement to have health coverage is not subject to criminal or civil penalties under the Code and interest does not accrue for failure to pay such assessments in a timely manner.
On page 19 of this 19 page law, you will find this:
b)Special rules. Notwithstanding any other provision of law—
(1)Waiver of criminal penalties.In the case of a failure by a taxpayer to timely pay the shared responsibility payment, the taxpayer is not subject to criminal prosecution or penalty for the failure.
(2)Limitations on liens and levies.If a taxpayer fails to pay the shared responsibility payment imposed by this section and §§1.5000A–1 through1.5000A–4, the Secretary will not file notice of lien on any property of the taxpayer, or levy on any property of the taxpayer for the failure.
The IRS only has the power to deduct whatever penalty you may incur from your tax refund. The Obama administration knows that poor people look forward to receiving their refund check each year, and don’t mind preying on the poor to take it from them. The poor would be wise to consult with their employer on how to not overpay their taxes by completing a new W-4 form so that they will get the maximum in their paycheck and, not expose themselves to government abuse.
