Annnnd... More Predicted Healthcare Fail

I really must thank Matt Drudge for doing the legwork here... but honestly, this pretty much speaks for itself.

Back in 2010, the Wall Street Journal ran a story about the newly passed health care reform bill. In it contained the following passage:

"A large swath of the business community opposed the changes, arguing the legislation was too broad and had too many taxes. "This will make us one of the highest-taxed regions in the world, and that's going to have an impact on the appetite for people to invest in medical innovation," said Bill Hawkins, chief executive of Medtronic Inc., which makes medical devices. He said his company could cut at least 1,000 jobs to absorb a new 2.3% excise tax on medical-device makers."

At the time, I explained to anybody and everybody precisely why all the incentives of the law would result in a serious decline in innovation and most importantly, in the overall suppy of health care goods & services. It shouldn't have been hard to understand, and of course, Mr. Hawkins explained exactly why part of the law would harm his business and those employed by it.

Lo and behold.

"Boston Scientific Corp. said yesterday that it plans to eliminate 1,200 to 1,400 jobs worldwide during the next 2 1/2 years to free money for new investments, the Natick medical device maker’s second major round of cuts since last year.

The company would not say how many jobs will be lost in Massachusetts, where fewer than 2,000 of its 25,000 employees are based. In February 2010, Boston Scientific said it would pare 1,300 jobs worldwide, but similarly did not say where."

But nope, it is probably all because the company is just mean and greedy and has nothing what-so-ever to do with the massive changes in incentives created by the healthcare bill, not to mention with RomneyCare in Massachusetts. Right?

Seriously though, this is the future of health care in America. I cannot be less thrilled.

We have created an environment where producers have little incentive to keep making the goods and services we all need if we want top-quality health care, and simultaneously an environment where consumers demand more and more without bearing any increased cost. There is just no better prescription for failure.

And just think, this was created by the same folks who are now bringing us all endless headaches with the debt ceiling!