ObamaCare Update : A Calamity of Democrat Ideology

A great update on ObamaCare - I wonder how many of those that voted for the individuals who stood tall in congress, testifying to the validity of ObamaCare's intentions, are now still willing to vote for these same people a third time given the catastrophic events that have unfolded surrounding this health care disaster?

If reality were of any concern to the millions that voted for progressive democrats twice before, why would anyone, that has even the lightest grip on sanity, vote for anyone, ever again, that brought this nightmare into our personal lives? 

In truth, if we are to survive this calamity of ObamaCare, it is imperative that all democrats be voted out of office that had anything to do with ObamaCare. You must know as it is common knowledge, every last democrat in congress voted for ObamaCare; not one Republican.

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The House of Representatives voted 238-181 today to delay implementation of the individual health insurance mandate for five years. Twelve Democrats voted with all of the House Republicans to pass the bill. If you recall, the 2012 Supreme Court decision ruled that Congress can impose Obamacare's individual mandate through its taxing power. Today's vote would essentially cut the individual mandate tax to $0.00 for the next 5 years. According to CBO, delaying the individual mandate would save $170 billion over 10 years, as 13 million fewer people than currently anticipated would be using taxpayer subsidies to help pay for health insurance.

 

The bill uses most of that "savings" to repeal scheduled cuts to physician payments and allow for small increases over the next 10 years. This is known in Washington as the "doc-fix" to the Medicare Sustainable Growth Rate (SGR). The original intent of SGR was to control Medicare spending by imposing yearly cuts to doctor payments. But every year, Congress passes legislation to temporarily "patch" the cuts with increased spending. This bill is intended to provide a 10-year solution to the problem. Although there is good support for the "doc-fix" in the Senate, the Upper Chamber is unlikely to move forward with this bill because of the individual mandate delay.
Here is some other Obamacare news:

• According to HHS, more than 2.6 million people have signed up for insurance through the federal exchange, and more than 1.6 million people have enrolled in the state-based exchanges. However, somewhere between 15-20% haven't paid their premiums and therefore aren't actually covered.
• The White House says the budget sequester won't apply to Obamacare subsidies. The move will restore about $560 million that is currently scheduled to be cut from Obamacare. Under the rules of the budget sequester, the administration will need to impose offsetting cuts to other programs to make up the difference.
• The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) withdrew a proposed rule this week that would have expanded the government's power to get involved in negotiations between Part D drug plans and pharmacies. NCPA Senior Fellow Devon Herrick explained to Congress why the proposed rules were a bad idea in the first place.
• The number of uninsured has recently dropped from 17.1% down to 15.9%.

• In an interview with WebMD, President Obama says you may have to change doctors to save money: "For the average person.they're going to have to make some choices, and they might end up having to switch doctors."
• In a cringing interview "Between Two Ferns" with Zach Galifianakis, the President and Mr. Galifianakis try to get young people to sign up for Obamacare by insulting each other. "All your friends have probably seen it already," says the White House website. "Don't be 'that guy' who hasn't."
• David Jolly defeated Alex Sink in a special election in Florida to replace the late Rep. Bill Young. Why is this Obamacare news? Because it is a harbinger for what is likely to be the foremost issue in the upcoming midterm elections.

The next issue of the Washington Update will be sent on March 28, 2014.