Another 'healthcare exemption'

[DrLeftover]

If it is so great... why all the free passes?

Lawmakers, aides may get Obamacare exemption

Congressional leaders in both parties are engaged in high-level, confidential talks about exempting lawmakers and Capitol Hill aides from the insurance exchanges they are mandated to join as part of President Barack Obama’s health care overhaul, sources in both parties said.

The talks — which involve Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.), House Speaker John Boehner (R-Ohio), the Obama administration and other top lawmakers — are extraordinarily sensitive, with both sides acutely aware of the potential for political fallout from giving carve-outs from the hugely controversial law to 535 lawmakers and thousands of their aides. Discussions have stretched out for months, sources said.

http://www.politico.com/story/2013/04/obamacare-exemption-lawmakers-aides-90610.html

 

[DrLeftover]

I wrote an email to the Delaware Congressional delegation and asked why there were now so many Federal Employee exemptions to the Health Care Mandate if the new law was the ideal solution for the rest of America.

So far I've gotten one answer.

May 1, 2013

Dr. Lewis Levite
Dover, DE 19903

Dear Dr. Levite:

Thank you for contacting me about your thoughts on the Affordable Care Act (ACA). I appreciate your taking the time to write to me about this important issue.

The passage of the ACA and the Supreme Court’s decision to uphold the constitutionality of the law were critical moments in our nation’s continued efforts to reform our health care system to ensure individuals all across the country have access to the health care services they need. Because of the ACA, the people of Delaware can have renewed confidence that they cannot be denied health care coverage because of pre-existing conditions. Parents will be able to have their sons and daughters covered on their plans until they are 26. No American will be denied coverage because of a cap on lifetime benefits, which already has protected 320,000 Delawareans covered under private insurance plans, and insurance companies will no longer be able to automatically charge women higher premiums. Preventative care will come without a co-pay or deductible, and even if your employer does not offer health insurance, you will be able to buy affordable health coverage. These are all very good things for our country and our communities.

While far from perfect, we should not scale back the aforementioned provisions and consumer protections that are valuable to so many Americans. I do, however, recognize that the implementation of the ACA needs to be careful and balanced, and that there are still ways we can improve upon this law. That is why I supported a bill to repeal a section of the ACA that required businesses to file IRS 1099 reports on purchases over $600, and I was pleased when it was signed into law. Please be assured that I will continue to look closely at the ACA’s implementation to find ways to ensure that it works best for everyone, and I will work with my colleagues to make beneficial changes. I will be sure to keep your views in mind should Congress consider any additional legislation that works to improve our health care system or addresses any of the provisions of the ACA.

Again, thank you for contacting me. I am honored to represent Delaware in the United States Senate and truly value hearing from constituents on issues of concern. My website, www.coons.senate.gov, can provide additional details about my work in the Senate, including legislation and state projects. I value your input and hope you will continue to keep me informed of the issues that matter to you.

Sincerely,
Christopher A. Coons
United States Senator

 

[Evil Eye]

And what a generic answer it was.

 

[DrLeftover]

a true work of art that

 

[Bluezone777]

So much typed out yet so little said and your question wasn't answered even in the slightest bit. Sounds like the typical non answer you get out of a politician these days.

 

[DrLeftover]

And yet, with every election, the vast majority of Assholes are re-elected.


(NOTE: In discussions of the US Congress, the terms Congressman, Representative, and Senator and the word Asshole, are interchangeable.)

 

[Jazzy]

Sounds like a generic message and all that's changed is the date and name.

 

[DrLeftover]

It took this long to get this answer from this asshole.

June 17, 2013

Dear Dr. Levite,

Thank you for taking the time to contact me with your concerns regarding alleged exemptions for Members of Congress and staff under the Affordable Care Act . I appreciate your thoughts and input about this important subject.



As you know, Congress passed the Affordable Care Act in March 2010 in an effort to improve access to preventive services and healthcare coverage for all Americans, while bringing down the cost of healthcare. The law requires insurers to offer coverage to individuals regardless of their health status. To guard against adverse selection, a situation in which only the sickest Americans would buy insurance, thus driving up the cost of premiums for everyone, the law requires all individuals to purchase insurance.



There has been a misconception that Members of Congress and their staff members are seeking to be exempt from the insurance exchange requirements that are a part of the Affordable Care Act. I would like to assure you that I fully oppose legislation that would treat Members of Congress and their staffs any differently than any other American citizens.



I appreciate your taking the time to contact me about this matter. I take seriously the trust Delawareans have placed in me and my responsibility to represent them in Congress, and I look forward to serving you in the coming years.

Sincerely,

John Carney
Member of Congress

 

[Evil Eye]

I wonder if anyone even read what you sent them (in full).

 

[DrLeftover]

evidently not

 

[DrLeftover]

And then you have....

....
The result is that part-time government workers — many of them low-income — face pay cuts that can top $3,000 a year, and yet will still be left without employer-provided benefits.

Here is just a small sampling of local news reports about what local government officials are saying about ObamaCare, and the steps they're taking to avoid or minimize its costs.

Phillipsburg, Kan.: "School administrators here say they are alarmed and confounded by the looming new costs they face with the implementation of the Affordable Care Act," according to the Kaiser Health Institute News Service. Chris Hipp, director of a Kansas special education cooperative, warned that ObamaCare's costs "could put us all out of business or change significantly how we do business," adding that "we are not built to pay full health benefits for noncertified folks who work a little more than 1,000 hours a year."

Dearborn, Mich.: "If we had to provide health care and other benefits to all of our employees, the burden on the city would be tremendous," said Mayor John O'Reilly, explaining why the city is cutting its more than 700 part-time and seasonal workers down to 28 hours a week. "The city is like any private or public employer having to adjust to changes in the law."

http://news.investors.com/061913-660419-local-governments-cut-hours-to-avoid-obamacare-mandate.htm

 

[DrLeftover]

Why am I expecting to call my healthcare provider and get .....


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F8L2cI8brzQ

 

[Evil Eye]

Because it's likely to make people give up and just in case they don't, they can always just apologise and say the person in question will be fired.

 

[DrLeftover]

Democrats write way around Obamacare for businesses into Immigration Bill

As the Washington Examiner's Philip Klein recently reported: "Under Obamacare, businesses with over 50 workers that employ American citizens without offering them qualifying health insurance could be subject to fines of up to $3,000 per worker. But because newly legalized immigrants wouldn’t be eligible for subsidies on the Obamacare exchanges until after they become citizens – at least 13 years under the Senate bill – businesses could avoid such fines by hiring the new immigrants instead."
... ...
"I don't know. I'd have to look at it closely," said Senator Bob Casey of Pennsylvania. "I just haven't read it that closely to know."

http://www.weeklystandard.com/blogs/senators-dont-know-if-bill-encourages-hiring-amnestied-immigrants-instead-us-citizens_737897.html

 

[DrLeftover]

And then they push the whole mess back another year.

http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/wonkblog/wp/2013/07/02/white-house-delays-employer-mandate-requirement-until-2015/?print=1

 

[Evil Eye]

They might as well start from scratch, or maybe let someone competent start from scratch.

 

[DrLeftover]

updated July 11, 2013
Wegmans cuts health benefits for part-time workers

The Rochester-based grocer that has been continually lauded for providing health insurance to its part-time workers will no longer offer that benefit.

Until recently, the company voluntarily offered health insurance to employees who worked 20 hours per week or more. Companies are required by law to offer health insurance only to full-time employees who work 30 hours or more per week.
...

Under the Affordable Care Act, part-time employees are not eligible for health insurance subsidies if their employer offers insurance.

“It’s a win-win. The employee gets subsidized coverage, and the employer gets to lower costs,” Murphy said.

http://www.buffalonews.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20130710/BUSINESS/130719892/1003

 

[Frost]

This bloated system is just going to cost the tax payer a fortune. It's not going to help anyone at all. Go ask Europe how their substandard healthcare system is working. That's what we're trying to get!

 

[DrLeftover]

Well this is awkward.

Aug 1, 2013

"Mr. Werfel, last week your employees who are a member of the National Treasury Employee's Union sent a form letter for union members to send in to ask they be exempt from the exchanges," a congressman asked. "Why are your employees trying to exempt themselves from the very law that you're tasked to enforce?"

"I don't want to speak for the NTEU, but I'll offer a perspective as a federal employee myself and a federal employee at the IRS," said the IRS chief. "And that is, we have right now as employees of the government, of the IRS, affordable health care coverage. I think the ACA was designed to provide an option or an alternative for individuals that do not. And all else being equal, I think if you're an individual who is satisfied with your health care coverage, you're probably in a better position to stick with that coverage than go through the change of moving into a different environment and going through that process. So I think for a federal employee, I think more likely, and I would -- can speak for myself, I would prefer to stay with the current policy that I'm pleased with rather than go through a change if I don't need to go through that change."

http://www.weeklystandard.com/blogs/irs-chief-i-want-keep-my-health-care-plan-not-switch-obamacare_742429.html

 

[DrLeftover]

Members of Congress and Hill staffers will not lose their healthcare subsidies from the government when Obamacare is implemented because of an exception proposed Wednesday by the Office of Personnel Management.

Under the current system, the government covers most of the cost of healthcare premiums for members and their staffers. But an amendment to the Affordable Care Act — proposed by Iowa Republican Sen. Chuck Grassley — threw those subsidies into question saying that members and staff must enter into the exchanges or be covered by insurance “created” by law.

The potential for staff losing the subsidies led to concerns of “brain drain” from the Hill if staffers left as a result of the increased costs.

Last week, when President Barack Obama came to the Hill to meet with Senate Democrats, he informed them that he would personally get involved to sort out the confusion, and the White House said that OPM would issue guidelines this week.

http://dailycaller.com/2013/08/07/members-staff-will-keep-healthcare-subsidies-under-obamacare/