Sen. John Ensign (R-Nev.) received a handwritten note Thursday from Joint Committee on Taxation Chief of Staff Tom Barthold confirming the penalty for failing to pay the up to $1,900 fee for not buying health insurance.

Violators could be charged with a misdemeanor and could face up to a year in jail or a $25,000 penalty, Barthold wrote on JCT letterhead. He signed it “Sincerely, Thomas A. Barthold.”

The note was a follow-up to Ensign’s questioning at the markup.

Click here to see the note.

This is from an email that Moveon  is sending out to their members.  (the highlighting is mine)

Have you read the stories this week declaring the public health insurance option dead? Well, it’s not.

The public option has the support of 83% of the American people,¹ (Take a look at this carefully.  It’s from JUNE 15th!!!  Only 43% now support it Click here for poll) and enough progressives in the House to block any bill without it.^2,3 And contrary to what you may have read, the White House has said repeatedly their position hasn’t changed.^4,5

But there is real danger in the Senate, where conservatives have stepped up efforts to kill the public option.

Can you call Senators Kay Hutchison and John Cornyn right away? Tell them that you, along with the majority of Americans, strongly support a public health insurance option—it’s the heart of real reform.

Here’s where to call:

Senator Kay Hutchison
District Offices:
Abilene: 325-676-2839
Austin: 512-916-5834
Dallas: 214-361-3500
Harlingen: 956-425-2253
Houston: 713-653-3456
San Antonio: 210-340-2885

Senator John Cornyn
District Offices:
Austin: 512-469-6034
Dallas: 972-239-1310
Harlingen: 956-423-0162
Houston: 713-572-3337
Lubbock: 806-472-7533
San Antonio: 210-224-7485
Tyler: 903-593-0902

1. “New Poll Shows Tremendous Support for Public Health Care Option,” Blog for Our Future, June 15, 2009.
http://www.moveon.org/r?r=51510&id=16878-17235110-fdrceox&t=2

2. “60 Members of Congress Say ‘No Public Plan, No Conference,’” Firedoglake, August 17, 2009.
http://www.moveon.org/r?r=51764&id=16878-17235110-fdrceox&t=3

3. “Weiner says health plan without public option won’t fly,” The Examiner, August 17, 2009.
http://www.moveon.org/r?r=51765&id=16878-17235110-fdrceox&t=4

4. “White House Issues Q&A on Health Plan,” The Wall Street Journal, August 17, 2009.
http://www.moveon.org/r?r=51770&id=16878-17235110-fdrceox&t=5

5. “White House Insists ‘Nothing Has Changed’ on Public Health Insurance Option,” ABC News, August 17, 2009.
http://www.moveon.org/r?r=51768&id=16878-17235110-fdrceox&t=6

6. “White House Issues Q&A on Health Plan,” The Wall Street Journal, August 17, 2009.
http://www.moveon.org/r?r=51770&id=16878-17235110-fdrceox&t=7

7. “Joint health care reform debate remains peaceful in Dallas,” Dallas Morning News, August 18, 2009.
http://www.moveon.org/r?r=51772&id=16878-17235110-fdrceox&t=8

8. “Alternate Plan as Health Option Muddies Debate,” The New York Times, August 17, 2009.
http://www.moveon.org/r?r=51773&id=16878-17235110-fdrceox&t=9

9. “Hundreds urge Polis to keep fighting for ‘public option,’” KDVR, August 17, 2009.
http://www.moveon.org/r?r=51771&id=16878-17235110-fdrceox&t=10

In making his case for a government takeover of the US health-care system, President Obama is going far beyond the usual Washington truth-stretching.

Take a look at just a few of the most common claims:

“If you like your current health-care plan, you can keep it.” Even White House spokesmen have said that Obama’s oft-repeated pledge that you can keep your current insurance isn’t meant to be taken literally. The reality is that millions of Americans — perhaps most Americans — will be forced to change insurance plans.

First, the president supports an individual mandate — a requirement that every American buy health insurance. And not just any insurance but insurance that includes all the benefits government thinks you should have. That insurance could be more expensive or include benefits that people don’t want or are morally opposed to, such as abortion services.

And that doesn’t just affect those without insurance today. The bills now before Congress say that while you won’t be immediately forced to switch from your current insurance to a government-specified plan, you’ll have to switch to satisfy the government’s requirements if you lose your current insurance or want to change plans.

Plus, the president supports the creation of a government insurance program that would compete with private insurance. But because this ultimately would be subsidized by American taxpayers, the government plan could keep its premiums artificially low or offer extra benefit.

In the end, millions of Americans would be forced out of the insurance they have today and into the government plan. Businesses, in particular, would have every incentive to dump their workers into the public plan. The actuarial firm the Lewin Group estimates that as many as 118.5 million people, roughly two-thirds of those with insurance today, would be shifted from private to public coverage.

“You will pay less.” The Congressional Budget Office has made it clear that the reform plans now being debated will increase overall health-care costs, yet President Obama on Friday repeatedly said that his reform would reduce costs and save Americans money.

But no matter how many times he says it, the truth is you will pay more — much more — both in higher taxes and in higher premiums.

The final health-care bill is expected to cost more than $1 trillion over the next 10 years. That means much higher taxes, and not just for the wealthy.

If one totals up all the new taxes in the House Democratic health-reform bill — the income surtax, the penalties on businesses and individuals that fail to buy into the government health plan, as well as other fees and taxes — the cost to US taxpayers will top $800 billion. New York City will face marginal tax rates as high as 57 percent.

At a time of rising unemployment and economic stagnation, that is like throwing an anchor to a drowning man.

In addition, the new insurance regulations expected to be part of the final bill are likely to drive up insurance premiums. And, if the new government-run plan under-reimburses doctors and hospitals — as Medicare and Medicaid do — providers would be forced to recoup that lost income by shifting their costs to private insurance, driving up premiums. A study by the Council for Affordable Health Insurance estimates that the president’s proposals could increase premiums by 75 to 95 percent.

“Quality will improve.” Anyone who thinks a government takeover of the health-care system will improve quality of care has only to look at the health-care programs the government already runs: The Veterans Administration is overwhelmed with problems, Medicaid is notorious for providing poor quality at a high cost — and Medicare has huge gaps in coverage.

Worse, however, on Friday, Obama endorsed the creation of a government board with the power to dictate how your doctor practices medicine and all but endorsed the rationing prevalent in nationalized health-care systems around the world.

In short, when it comes to claims about the wondrous new world of government-run health care, a bit of skepticism might be in order.