How's this for hope and change. . . . .

Obama has said that there would be no "material" impact to finances until 2014.

Truth: Caterpillar and John Deere already announced non-cash charges of $100 and $150 million, respectively, for this year based upon the impact of this bill on forward retiree health care costs.


But today a 100-kiloton device landed on AT&T's (NYSE: T) balance sheet - they announced a one billion dollar non-cash charge:


This doesn't even take into account current employees.   Wait till that hits.  


Hope you've got your bets hedged and your fall back plan in place cause this stock market is going to get dicey.   These are just the companies that weren't asleep at the wheel.   The rest will be along shortly.


Read the whole story here at The Market Ticker.  




Update:


The charge is the largest disclosed so far. Earlier this week, AK Steel Corp., Caterpillar Inc., Deere & Co. and Valero Energy announced similar accounting charges, saying the health care law that President Barack Obama signed Tuesday will raise their expenses. On Friday, 3M Co. said it will also take a charge of $85 million to $90 million.


Read even more here.




How's this for an update:

Claire McCaskill: Hey, maybe we “overpromised” on ObamaCare

It’s just not going to happen as fast as the Democrats have been suggesting. This is the very first wiggle in the endless goalpost-moving that will characterize our new bouncing baby boondoggle in the decades to come, so enjoy it. 

NO WAY!   Ya think?

You do want to know more. . . . don't you?  Click here and here.

Welcome to a 40% tax on your medicine cabinet.    


Begins 2011 but could be sooner.


This just keeps getting better and better.   OTC drugs just got a lot more expensive.

one of the first things millions of Americans will “see” is an effective 40 percent tax hike on the over-the-counter medicines – from an antihistamine such as Claritin for allergies, pain relief medicine such as Tylenol or Excedrin, Pedialyte to prevent their kids from becoming dehydrated when they are sick, and even prenatal vitamins if they are expecting another one.

All of these items have two things in common.  One is that they are classified as “over the counter” (OTC) medicines and available without a doctor’s prescription. The other is that if you pay for any of these items with money in your flexible spending account (FSA) or health savings account (HSA) – and according to this guide from FSA administrator Benesyst , all of these are eligible expenses  — you will face an effective tax increase of up to 40 percent on these items in the health care bill that President Obama recently signed.

The bill restricts individuals with these pre-tax accounts to buying a “medicine or drug only if such medicine or drug is a prescribed” one. And ironically, this tax that will raise health care costs substantially by creating incentives for the use of more expensive prescription drugs even when OTC drugs are just as safe and effective.

Want to know more?  Click here if you can stomach it.