AP: Like Your Health Care Policy? You May Be Losing It | IRS Are the Obamacare Enforcers
Another week brings yet another mainstream media outlet reporting on the flaws in the "not so" Government's Affordable Care Program, dubbed as "Obamacare."
Yesterday, in a story titled, “Like your health care policy? You may be losing it, ” the AP reported, “Many people who buy their own health insurance could get surprises in the mail this fall: cancellation notices because their current policies aren’t up to the basic standards of President Barack Obama’s health care law. They, and some small businesses, will have to find replacement plans — and that has some state insurance officials worried about consumer confusion. Rollout of the Affordable Care Act is going full speed ahead, despite repeal efforts by congressional Republicans. . . . The goal is to cover most of the nation’s nearly 50 million uninsured, but even Obama says there will be bumps in the road. And discontinued insurance plans could be another bump. Also, it doesn’t seem to square with one of the president’s best known promises about his health care overhaul: ‘If you like your health care plan, you’ll be able to keep your health care plan.’ . . . Other bumps on the road to the new health care law include potentially unaffordable premiums for smokers unless states act to waive them, a new $63-per-head fee that will hit companies already providing coverage to employees and dependents, and a long-term care insurance program that had to be canceled because of the risk it could go belly up. . . . The National Association of Insurance Commissioners says it is hearing that many carriers will cancel policies and issue new ones because administratively that is easier than changing existing plans.”
Discussing the president’s promise -- he has been breaking from the start -- the AP writes, “‘You’re going to be forcibly upgraded,’ said Bob Laszewski, a health care industry consultant. ‘It’s like showing up at the airline counter and being told, “You have no choice, $300 please. You’re getting a first-class ticket, why are you complaining?”‘ Obama’s promise dates back to June of 2009, when Congress was starting to grapple with overhauling the health care system to cover uninsured Americans. Later that summer, public anxieties about changes would erupt at dozens of angry congressional town hall meetings with constituents. ‘If you like your health care plan, you’ll be able to keep your health care plan, period,’ the president reassured the American Medical Association. ‘No one will take it away, no matter what.’”
Of course, it turns out that’s just not the case. As the AP points out, “Nationally a considerable number of people could be affected by cancellations. Information from insurers is still dribbling in to state regulators. In Washington state, the changes will affect more than 400,000 people, said Stephanie Marquis, spokeswoman for insurance commissioner Mike Kreidler.”
Meanwhile, President Obama’s healthcare law continues to squeeze small businesses. According to The Wall Street Journal, “Small employers across the U.S. are struggling to get a handle on their health-care costs under the Affordable Care Act. Many of them say they expect their operating expenses to jump in 2014, when the law’s employee health-insurance requirements take effect. . . .
"Starting next year, the federal government will impose penalties on any business with 50 or more full-time equivalent employees that doesn’t provide adequate health-insurance coverage to workers who clock 30 or more hours a week. If such employers choose not to offer health coverage, they will face a penalty of $2,000 for each full-time worker, excluding the first 30. If they do offer coverage, but the insurance doesn’t meet the law’s minimum requirements, they face a penalty of $3,000 for each worker who gets a federal subsidy through state insurance exchanges. Owners with between 50 and 200 full-time employees are in a particularly tough spot. These businesses are big enough to meet the government’s threshold for penalties, but they lack the purchasing power to negotiate the best rates with insurers.”
And on top of the very real problems this unpopular law creates for people across the country, Americans now face the specter of enforcement of many of the law’s provisions by the scandal-ridden IRS.
In an interview with The Washington Post, Senate Republican Leader Mitch McConnell again sounded the alarm about the IRS and Obamacare. “McConnell on Wednesday said the IRS controversy is just one more reason to do away with the health-care law, but not the only one. ‘I was in favor of repealing Obamacare long before the IRS scandal,’ he said. ‘It’s the single worst piece of legislation in a long time.’ . . . ‘The role of the IRS will be significant,’ the Senate leader said. ‘I don’t want to overstate it, but they are the enforcer. Regardless of whether they have access to individuals’ health records, they are the way the law will be enforced.’”
Last week on the Senate floor, McConnell said “Even the IRS’ staunchest defenders in this scandal describe their actions as a case of ‘horrible customer service.’ That’s the best they can say: ‘Horrible customer service.’ And now they’re going to be put in charge of a new trillion-dollar program? One that will give them access to all sorts of sensitive, deeply personal information? Well, that’s just what the Administration and congressional Democrats are about to let happen. The IRS is in charge of administering some of the most important elements of Obamacare. . . . The potential for waste and abuse would have been there regardless of which agency was put in charge of administering this bloated law. . . . Obamacare is just massive – about 20,000 pages of regulations already – so waste and abuse is basically unavoidable. But now, we’re going to have Americans worrying that they might be discriminated against too – just for having an opinion? And you know what? We’re not going to be able to tell them not to worry.”
Tags: Affordable Health Care Act, obamacare, problems, losing healthcare policy, higher costs, IRS To share or post to your site, click on "Post Link". Please mention / link to the ARRA News Service. Thanks!
Yesterday, in a story titled, “Like your health care policy? You may be losing it, ” the AP reported, “Many people who buy their own health insurance could get surprises in the mail this fall: cancellation notices because their current policies aren’t up to the basic standards of President Barack Obama’s health care law. They, and some small businesses, will have to find replacement plans — and that has some state insurance officials worried about consumer confusion. Rollout of the Affordable Care Act is going full speed ahead, despite repeal efforts by congressional Republicans. . . . The goal is to cover most of the nation’s nearly 50 million uninsured, but even Obama says there will be bumps in the road. And discontinued insurance plans could be another bump. Also, it doesn’t seem to square with one of the president’s best known promises about his health care overhaul: ‘If you like your health care plan, you’ll be able to keep your health care plan.’ . . . Other bumps on the road to the new health care law include potentially unaffordable premiums for smokers unless states act to waive them, a new $63-per-head fee that will hit companies already providing coverage to employees and dependents, and a long-term care insurance program that had to be canceled because of the risk it could go belly up. . . . The National Association of Insurance Commissioners says it is hearing that many carriers will cancel policies and issue new ones because administratively that is easier than changing existing plans.”
Discussing the president’s promise -- he has been breaking from the start -- the AP writes, “‘You’re going to be forcibly upgraded,’ said Bob Laszewski, a health care industry consultant. ‘It’s like showing up at the airline counter and being told, “You have no choice, $300 please. You’re getting a first-class ticket, why are you complaining?”‘ Obama’s promise dates back to June of 2009, when Congress was starting to grapple with overhauling the health care system to cover uninsured Americans. Later that summer, public anxieties about changes would erupt at dozens of angry congressional town hall meetings with constituents. ‘If you like your health care plan, you’ll be able to keep your health care plan, period,’ the president reassured the American Medical Association. ‘No one will take it away, no matter what.’”
Of course, it turns out that’s just not the case. As the AP points out, “Nationally a considerable number of people could be affected by cancellations. Information from insurers is still dribbling in to state regulators. In Washington state, the changes will affect more than 400,000 people, said Stephanie Marquis, spokeswoman for insurance commissioner Mike Kreidler.”
Meanwhile, President Obama’s healthcare law continues to squeeze small businesses. According to The Wall Street Journal, “Small employers across the U.S. are struggling to get a handle on their health-care costs under the Affordable Care Act. Many of them say they expect their operating expenses to jump in 2014, when the law’s employee health-insurance requirements take effect. . . .
"Starting next year, the federal government will impose penalties on any business with 50 or more full-time equivalent employees that doesn’t provide adequate health-insurance coverage to workers who clock 30 or more hours a week. If such employers choose not to offer health coverage, they will face a penalty of $2,000 for each full-time worker, excluding the first 30. If they do offer coverage, but the insurance doesn’t meet the law’s minimum requirements, they face a penalty of $3,000 for each worker who gets a federal subsidy through state insurance exchanges. Owners with between 50 and 200 full-time employees are in a particularly tough spot. These businesses are big enough to meet the government’s threshold for penalties, but they lack the purchasing power to negotiate the best rates with insurers.”
And on top of the very real problems this unpopular law creates for people across the country, Americans now face the specter of enforcement of many of the law’s provisions by the scandal-ridden IRS.
Last week on the Senate floor, McConnell said “Even the IRS’ staunchest defenders in this scandal describe their actions as a case of ‘horrible customer service.’ That’s the best they can say: ‘Horrible customer service.’ And now they’re going to be put in charge of a new trillion-dollar program? One that will give them access to all sorts of sensitive, deeply personal information? Well, that’s just what the Administration and congressional Democrats are about to let happen. The IRS is in charge of administering some of the most important elements of Obamacare. . . . The potential for waste and abuse would have been there regardless of which agency was put in charge of administering this bloated law. . . . Obamacare is just massive – about 20,000 pages of regulations already – so waste and abuse is basically unavoidable. But now, we’re going to have Americans worrying that they might be discriminated against too – just for having an opinion? And you know what? We’re not going to be able to tell them not to worry.”
Tags: Affordable Health Care Act, obamacare, problems, losing healthcare policy, higher costs, IRS To share or post to your site, click on "Post Link". Please mention / link to the ARRA News Service. Thanks!
Posted by Bill Smith at 2:44 PM - Post Link
1 Comments:
I'll be losing mine because I pay for it myself...DAMN OBAMA!
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