One Year After Dems Voted to Continue Government Healthcare Takeover, Americans are Suffering the Consequences
Democrats’ Disastrous Healthcare Experiment is Causing Higher Premiums and Rising Costs, Punishing Small Businesses with New Taxes and Fees and Threatening the Doctor-Patient Relationship
- One year ago today, Democrats voted to continue their government takeover of healthcare, ignoring the majority of voters who support repeal of the law.
- Yet one year later, Democrats’ government healthcare takeover is causing healthcare premiums to increase while healthcare costs continue to rise and punishing small business job creators with new taxes and fees.
- The Democrats’ healthcare disaster also threatens the doctor-patient relationship and breaks Democrats’ own promises, as many patients will lose their doctors or be forced out of their coverage of choice due to the impact of Democrats’ healthcare takeover. Yet in spite of all of this, Democrats continue to oppose repeal.
One year ago today, Democrats voted to continue their government takeover of healthcare, ignoring the majority of voters who support repeal of the law:
98% OF HOUSE DEMOCRATS REFUSE TO REPEAL GOVERNMENT TAKEOVER OF HEALTHCARE: Final Vote: 245-189 (House Vote #14, 1/19/2011)
RASMUSSEN HEALTHCARE LAW TRACKING POLL: 54% FAVOR REPEAL, ONLY 42% OPPOSE REPEAL: (“Health Care Law,” Rasmussen Reports, 1/9/2012)
REAL CLEAR POLITICS POLLING AVERAGE ON HEALTHCARE LAW: 50% OPPOSE LAW, ONLY 38% FAVOR: (“Obama and Democrats’ Health Care Plan,” Real Clear Politics, Accessed 1/17/2012)
Yet one year later, Democrats’ government healthcare takeover is causing healthcare premiums to increase while healthcare costs continue to rise and punishing small business job creators with new taxes and fees:
HEALTHCARE PREMIUMS ON THE RISE:
DEMOCRATS’ HEALTHCARE DISASTER CAUSING PREMIUMS TO INCREASE: “At the moment, the new law is making health care slightly less affordable. Independent health care experts say the law has caused some insurance premiums to rise. As we wrote in October, the new law has caused about a 1 percent to 3 percent increase in health insurance premiums for employer-sponsored family plans because of requirements for increased benefits. Last year’s premium increases cast even more doubt on another promise the president has made — that the health care law would ‘lower premiums by up to $2,500 for a typical family per year.'” (D’Angelo Gore, “Promises, Promises,” FactCheck.org, 1/4/2012)
“HEALTH INSURERS PIN RATE HIKES ON HEALTH LAW”: “Health insurers say they plan to raise premiums for some Americans as a direct result of the health overhaul in coming weeks, complicating Democrats’ efforts to trumpet their signature achievement before the midterm elections.” (Janet Adamy, “Health Insurers Pin Rate Hikes on Health Law,” The Wall Street Journal, 9/7/2010)
63 PERCENT OF EMPLOYERS PLAN PREMIUM INCREASES: “The economic slowdown and the likely increase in costs due to health care reform have led many employers to use various incentives to promote greater individual responsibility… Over the last year, employers put more emphasis on increasing premium contributions (Figure 23). Nearly two-thirds of companies have increased the share employees and their dependents pay in premium contributions (versus 2010).” (“16th Annual Towers Watson/National Business Group on Health Employer Survey on Purchasing Value in Health Care,” Towers Watson, March 2011)
HEALTHCARE COSTS CONTINUE CLIMB:
“COSTS CONTINUE TO OUTPACE INFLATION,” WITH 7 PERCENT INCREASE IN JUST ONE YEAR: “[T]otal health care costs continue to climb to unprecedented levels, reaching an anticipated $11,176 per active employee in 2011—up from $10,387 in 2010 (Figure 6, page 5)—a 7.6% increase in gross costs over this period.” (“16th Annual Towers Watson/National Business Group on Health Employer Survey on Purchasing Value in Health Care,” Towers Watson, March 2011)
OBAMACARE FAILING TO CONTROL COSTS: “Workers at a circuit-board factory here just saw their health insurance premiums rise 20 percent. At Buddy Zaremba’s print shop nearby, the increase was 37 percent. And for engineers at the Woodland Design Group, they rose 43 percent…
“[F]or now, at many workplaces here, the rising cost of health care is prompting insurance premiums to skyrocket while coverage is shrinking.” (Robert Pear, “As Health Care Costs Soar, G.O.P. and Insurers Differ on Cause,” The New York Times, 3/4/2011)
SMALL BUSINESSES GET HAMMERED WITH NEW COSTS:
INSURANCE COSTS RISING “PARTICULARLY FOR SMALL BUSINESSES”: “As Congress continues to debate the new health care law, health insurance costs are still rising, particularly for small businesses.” (Robert Pear, “As Health Care Costs Soar, G.O.P. and Insurers Differ on Cause,” The New York Times, 3/4/2011)
NFIB CONFIRMS OBAMACARE WORSENS UNCERTAINTY, 90% OF SMALL BUSINESS OWNERS WANT REPEAL: “Small-business owners remain deeply concerned that the healthcare law costs too much and further jeopardizes the economic recovery of our nation’s job creators. In fact, more than 90 percent of them favor repeal of the new law.
“The healthcare law actually makes things worse for small business and will lead to continued economic uncertainty…” (“Small Business Looks to the New Congress to Repeal the Healthcare Law,” National Federation of Independent Business, Accessed 3/21/2011)
$570 BILLION IN NEW TAXES ON SMALL BUSINESSES: “New, Expensive Taxes:New taxes mean less money being re-invested into the business, into employees and into growing and expanding. Small businesses already pay 66 percent more in tax compliance than larger businesses. This law levies $570 billion in new taxes…” (“Small Business Looks to the New Congress to Repeal the Healthcare Law,” National Federation of Independent Business, Accessed 3/21/2011)
WHILE JOBS ARE DESTROYED:
CBO DIRECTOR DOUG ELMENDORF: HEALTHCARE TAKEOVER WILL DESTROY 800,000 JOBS: “Chairman [Paul] Ryan: “[I]t’s been argued…that the new health care law will create jobs and increase labor force participation. But if I recall from your analysis, it was quite the opposite. Is that not the case?”
“Director [Douglas] Elmendorf : “Yes.”…
“Rep. [John] Campbell: Thank you, Mr. Chairman, we’ll — and Dr. Elmendorf — and we’ll continue this conversation right now. First on health care, before I get to — before I get to broader issues, you just mentioned that you believe — or that in your estimate, that the health care law would reduce the labor used in the economy by about 1/2 of 1 percent, given that, I believe you say, there’s 160 million full-time people working in ’20-’21. That means that, in your estimation, the health care law would reduce employment by 800,000 in ’20-’21. Is that correct?
“Director Elmendorf: Yes. The way I would put it is that we do estimate, as you said, that…employment will be about 160 million by the end of the decade. Half a percent of that is 800,000.” (Jeffrey H. Anderson, “CBO Director Says ObamaCare Would Reduce Employment by 800,000 Workers,” The Weekly Standard, 2/10/2011)
JOB CREATORS GETTING HAMMERED WITH NEW COSTS, PREVENTING JOB CREATION: “When CKE’s health-care advisers, citing Obamacare’s complexities, opacities and uncertainties, said that it would add between $7.3 million and $35.1 million to the company’s $12 million health-care costs in 2010, Puzder said: I need a number I can plan with. They guessed $18 million — twice what CKE spent last year building new restaurants. Obamacare must mean fewer restaurants.
“And therefore fewer jobs. Each restaurant creates, on average, 25 jobs — and as much as 3.5 times that number of jobs in the community. (CKE spends about $1 billion a year on food and paper products, $175 million on advertising, $33 million on maintenance, etc.)” (George Will, “Choking on Obamacare,” The Washington Post, 12/2/2011)
The Democrats’ healthcare disaster also threatens the doctor-patient relationship and breaks Democrats’ own promises, as many patients will lose their doctors or be forced out of their coverage of choice due to the impact of Democrats’ healthcare takeover. Yet in spite of all of this, Democrats continue to oppose repeal:
DEMOCRATS PROMISED AMERICANS WOULD GET TO KEEP THEIR DOCTORS:PRESIDENT OBAMA: “If you like your doctor, you’re going to be able to keep your doctor. If you like your plan, keep your plan. I don’t believe we should give government or the insurance companies more control over health care in America.I think it’s time to give you, the American people, more control over your health.“(“Obama’s Speech on Health Care Reform,” Real Clear Politics, 3/19/2010)
“The landmark legislation probably won’t hold costs down, and it won’t let everybody keep their current health insurance if they like it, Chief Actuary Richard Foster told the House Budget Committee. His office is responsible for independent long-range cost estimates.” (“Medicare Official Doubts Health Law Savings,” Associated Press, 1/26/2011)
MCKINSEY STUDY: 30 PERCENT OF EMPLOYERS WILL “DEFINITELY” OR “PROBABLY” STOP COVERAGE FOR EMPLOYEES: “McKinsey, which based its projection on a survey of more than 1,300 employers of various sizes and industries and other proprietary research, found that 30 percent of employers will ‘definitely’ or ‘probably’ stop offering coverage in the years after 2014, when new medical insurance exchanges are supposed to be up and running.” (“Many U.S. Employers to Drop Health Benefits: McKinsey,” Reuters, 7/7/2011)
MEDICARE SCOREKEEPER SAYS OBAMA STATEMENT NOT TRUE: “The landmark legislation probably won’t hold costs down, and it won’t let everybody keep their current health insurance if they like it, Chief Actuary Richard Foster told the House Budget Committee. His office is responsible for independent long-range cost estimates.” (“Medicare Official Doubts Health Law Savings,” Associated Press, 1/26/2011)
MORE THAN 25 PERCENT OF COMPANIES TO DROP COVERAGE FOR RETIREES:“More than one-quarter of companies plan to discontinue retiree medical sponsorship in 2012 for at least one segment of current and/or future retirees(Figure 22).” (“16th Annual Towers Watson/National Business Group on Health Employer Survey on Purchasing Value in Health Care,” Towers Watson, March 2011)
DRAMATIC DOCTOR SHORTAGES TO ENSUE:
BUT DOCTOR SHORTAGES TO GET 50% WORSE BECAUSE OF HEALTHCARE LAW:“The U.S. healthcare reform law will worsen a shortage of physicians as millions of newly insured patients seek care, the Association of American Medical Colleges said on Thursday.
“The group’s Center for Workforce Studies released new estimates that showed shortages would be 50 percent worse in 2015 than forecast.” (Peter Cooney, “Health Reform To Worsen Doctor Shortage: Group,” Reuters, 9/30/2010)
MANY DOCTORS TO LEAVE THE PROFESSION DUE TO OBAMACARE: “Two of every three practicing physicians oppose the medical overhaul plan under consideration in Washington, and hundreds of thousands would think about shutting down their practices or retiring early if it were adopted, a new IBD/TIPP Poll has found…
“Four of nine doctors, or 45%, said they ‘would consider leaving their practice or taking an early retirement’ if Congress passes the plan the Democratic majority and White House have in mind.” (Terry Jones, “45% of Doctors Would Consider Quitting if Congress Passes Health Care Overhaul,” Investor’s Business Daily, 9/15/2009)
STATES IN SOUTH AND THE WEST TO FACE WORST DOCTOR SHORTAGES:“States in the South and Mountain West, which traditionally have the lowest rates of primary care physicians, could struggle to provide medical services to the surge of new patients expected to enroll in Medicaid under the health overhaul and federal incentives may not provide much help, according to a report issued today by a Washington health research group.” (Jessica Marcy, “Doctor Shortages Under Health Law May Depend On Geography,” Kaiser Health News, 3/17/2011)