KirtFalcon Posted May 3, 2016 Share Posted May 3, 2016 Obama Admin Plans End Run Around Congress with Obamacare Bailout SchemeBy Phil Kerpen | May 3, 2016 | 2:07 PM EDT Obamacare banner hangs torn. (AP Photo) The biggest victory for taxpayers in the Obamacare fight so far was the enactment in late 2014 of language prohibiting the Risk Corridor program from being transformed into an open-ended bailout for big insurance companies. Unfortunately that language is now being sidestepped by a scheme in which the Obama administration invited the big insurance companies to sue the government, which in turn is likely to take a dive on the lawsuit and then make the bailout payments anyway. It’s outrageous and must be stopped. At the time Congress debated the funding restriction, both the Congressional Budget Office and the White House Office of Management and Budget agreed that the provision neither spent nor saved any taxpayer money. That was because the administration maintained the program would, as Obamacare supporters had always claimed, be run in a budget-neutral fashion, paying out to insurance companies only what the program itself had already collected from other insurance companies. Congress thought it was important to cement this budget-neutrality promise into statute, just in case. Shortly after they did it became clear that, contrary to the administration’s claims, if Congress had not acted the program would have been transformed into a massive multi-billion dollar bailout. The language enacted into law was crystal clear, prohibiting Risk Corridor payment from any of the sources of funds available to the Department of Health and Human Services other than program revenues. The accompanying committee report said: In 2014, HHS issued a regulation stating that the risk corridor program will be budget neutral, meaning that the federal government will never pay out more than it collects from issuers over the three year period risk corridors are in effect. The agreement includes new bill language to prevent the CMS Program Management appropriation account from being used to support risk corridors payments.” So taxpayers won? Not quite. The Obama administration issued a memorandum stating that – contrary to the clear intent of the duly-enacted funding restriction, the administration’s repeated promises, and HHS’s own regulation – they considered insurance companies to be legally owed bailout payments from the risk corridor program far in excess of program revenues. “HHS recognizes that the Affordable Care Act requires the Secretary to make full payments to Issuers,” announced an unsigned memo from the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS), the agency inside HHS that oversees Obamacare. The memo had to be approved by the interim administrator of CMS, a longtime UnitedHealth Group executive vice president, Andy Slavitt, who United paid millions on his way into government. Obama gave him an ethics waiver to oversee his previous employer – and shovel bailout bucks their way. Taking the hint, the insurance industry filed the $5 billion class action lawsuit Health Republic Insurance Company v. the United States that is now pending in the U.S. Court of Federal Claims. The government’s response brief is due by June 24. At stake is $5 billion that taxpayers could potentially be forced to pay wealthy insurance companies who are already minting a fortune from a law that forces most Americans to buy their product or pay a hefty penalty tax. Also on the line is a fundamental principle of the Constitution: Congress’s power of the purse. If Congress can enact language to prevent payments from being made and an administration can scheme its way around it by inviting a lawsuit, then no funding restriction is worth the paper it’s printed on. The power of the purse is a dead letter and Congress is written out of the Constitution. Members of Congress must not allow that to happen. They need to pursue every possible action – from an aggressive media offensive to shame the administration and insurance companies, to a legal move to intervene in the lawsuit, to new, bulletproof appropriations language that prohibits any payment out of the Judgment Fund, the mechanism that would be used for a legal settlement. Their fundamental institutional power is at stake – along with a lot of taxpayer money. Phil Kerpen is head of American Commitment and a leading free-market policy analyst and advocate in Washington. Kerpen was the principal policy and legislative strategist at Americans for Prosperity for over five years. He previously worked at the Free Enterprise Fund, the Club for Growth, and the Cato Institute. Kerpen is also a nationally syndicated columnist, chairman of the Internet Freedom Coalition, and author of the 2011 book "Democracy Denied." http://cnsnews.com/commentary/phil-kerpen/obama-admin-plans-end-run-around-congress-obamacare-bailout-scheme Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hagar Posted May 4, 2016 Share Posted May 4, 2016 I'm not sure that all the countries in the world could keep that money pit paid for. I propose that anyone (especially politicians) that voiced the opinion that the plan would be self sufficient, should never be allowed to vote again. For nothing. Not even dog catcher in Buffalo Hump, Colorado. When a guy who struggled to get out of Vidor HS knew it, how come these highly educated idiots didn't? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gamewatcher63 Posted August 30, 2016 Share Posted August 30, 2016 http://www.mrctv.org/blog/ Hugh price increases kick in this year also...... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stoney Posted August 30, 2016 Share Posted August 30, 2016 Our insurance is "too good". No co pays. High deductible. Almost $180 a month for a single guy with no kids. Can't wait to see what the "normal" insurance will look like. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KirtFalcon Posted August 30, 2016 Share Posted August 30, 2016 It's been a failure since the jump .... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CENTEXFAN Posted August 30, 2016 Share Posted August 30, 2016 It's been a failure since the jump .... Obamacare was always suppose to fail. First you have to crash the system. Then implement the plan you wanted in the first place, single-payer health care. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Baron Posted August 30, 2016 Share Posted August 30, 2016 Our insurance is "too good". No co pays. High deductible. Almost $180 a month for a single guy with no kids. Can't wait to see what the "normal" insurance will look like. It gets worse as your age increases. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stoney Posted August 30, 2016 Share Posted August 30, 2016 It gets worse as your age increases. Yippee. :( Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hagar Posted October 5, 2016 Share Posted October 5, 2016 Gotta agree with Slick Willie on this. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KirtFalcon Posted October 5, 2016 Share Posted October 5, 2016 Slick slips up once in a while and tells the truth .... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DaveTV1 Posted October 5, 2016 Share Posted October 5, 2016 I've seen more flipflopping and lying in this election than all the others combined. Trump and Pence have been the worst. I can see changing your mind on a few issues, but not almost 90% of them. Now Clinton is saying this : http://www.cbsnews.com/news/bill-clinton-declares-his-support-for-obamacare/ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DaveTV1 Posted October 6, 2016 Share Posted October 6, 2016 :lol: That did not take long. I was concerned he was sick. Nope, back to normal. What could it be about? Chalk it up to lunacy. The Clinton's are natural born liars, and he slipped. Hillary probably made him recant what Obamacare really IS. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DaveTV1 Posted October 7, 2016 Share Posted October 7, 2016 ‘So you’ve got this crazy system where all of a sudden 25 million more people have health care, and then the people who are out there busting it, sometimes 60 hours a week, wind up with their premiums doubled and their coverage cut in half. It’s the craziest thing in the world.’ Too many words for a slip. What prompted this bs when the next day he is the same Bill , you know promoting stuff like AHC. I know why. It's worse than that from what I've read. He didn't mention that the deductibles have increased 114% according to the Houston Chronicle. Many feel that even with insurance that they don't have insurance anymore. He even lied about the number that have enrolled. The minimum is projected at 12.7 million with a high of 20 million. http://obamacarefacts.com/sign-ups/obamacare-enrollment-numbers/ . Does any politician have their facts straight anymore ???? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sideliner Posted October 10, 2016 Share Posted October 10, 2016 Single payer... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RETIREDFAN1 Posted October 25, 2016 Share Posted October 25, 2016 http://www.breitbart.com/big-government/2016/10/24/obamacare-death-spiral-premiums-choices/ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hagar Posted October 25, 2016 Share Posted October 25, 2016 I'd like to see a response from anyone surprised by this. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DaveTV1 Posted October 25, 2016 Share Posted October 25, 2016 25% increase in premiums that have already increased a lot. That doesn't count the high deductibles that these plans have. I believe I've already posted the article about people that have insurance, but don't feel that they do because of the high deductible. It would be cheaper for them to pay the fine than the outrageous premiums. It's a disaster as most things that the Government tries to control have become. Of course we'll get some lefty that tries to say the Government is working for people's best interest, but I don't see how they have. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CENTEXFAN Posted October 25, 2016 Share Posted October 25, 2016 As long as Pharmaceuticals & Medical companies can charge what they want, no plan will work. EpiPen 100 dollar increased to 600 dollars over night. Hello single-payer health care. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KirtFalcon Posted October 25, 2016 Share Posted October 25, 2016 As long as Pharmaceuticals & Medical companies can charge what they want, no plan will work. EpiPen 100 dollar increased to 600 dollars over night. Hello single-payer health care. Single payer would be even worse ... rationed healthcare, less choices, inferior care, long waits, decisions taken away from families and physicians, skyrocketing costs and poor administration ..... like all government run programs ... tru storie ... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DaveTV1 Posted October 25, 2016 Share Posted October 25, 2016 As long as Pharmaceuticals & Medical companies can charge what they want, no plan will work. EpiPen 100 dollar increased to 600 dollars over night. Hello single-payer health care. And the CEO's father is... http://www.bloomberg.com/politics/articles/2016-09-07/senator-praises-generous-daughter-who-raised-prices-on-epipens . Even with single payer health care it will be even a worse mess. While I do believe in Capitalism, I don't think that hospitals should be able to charge some of the high prices for some of the things that they do. It's worse than buying popcorn and drinks at the movie theater. I realize that they charge what they do, because insurance companies will pay it, and there are people that go to the hospital that can't afford the treatments they need, but it's outrageous for those that pay out of pocket. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CarthDawg77 Posted October 26, 2016 Share Posted October 26, 2016 And the CEO's father is... http://www.bloomberg.com/politics/articles/2016-09-07/senator-praises-generous-daughter-who-raised-prices-on-epipens . Even with single payer health care it will be even a worse mess. While I do believe in Capitalism, I don't think that hospitals should be able to charge some of the high prices for some of the things that they do. It's worse than buying popcorn and drinks at the movie theater. I realize that they charge what they do, because insurance companies will pay it, and there are people that go to the hospital that can't afford the treatments they need, but it's outrageous for those that pay out of pocket. Hospitals charge exorbitant prices to re-coup expenses incurred by those who have NO insurance at all; I've seen this first hand myself... My wife was in an accident & we had excellent insurance; my Insurance paid for TWO Lifeflight helicopter rides on the same date, although she was only flown Once! When I confronted the hospital & told themto refund my Insurance, (Blue Cross/ Blue Shield) I was told, " We don't Do that"... It's a racket; always Has been... Always Will be.😏 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DaveTV1 Posted October 26, 2016 Share Posted October 26, 2016 Hospitals charge exorbitant prices to re-coup expenses incurred by those who have NO insurance at all; I've seen this first hand myself... My wife was in an accident & we had excellent insurance; my Insurance paid for TWO Lifeflight helicopter rides on the same date, although she was only flown Once! When I confronted the hospital & told them to refund my Insurance, (Blue Cross/ Blue Shield) I was told, " We don't Do that"... It's a racket; always Has been... Always Will be. I know part of it is that, but that can't be the entire reason. I haven't had to visit a hospital much, but I have twice since I was born, and I've heard of their charges sort of like the $600 hammer that the Defense Department bought in the 80's. While that supposedly was a myth, it was billed as such. I'm sure the same happens with hospitals because of the Medicare and Medicaid fraud that we hear about with Doctors and Hospitals. I realize that there is a high price to pay to be a Doctor today with student loans and malpractice insurance, but back in the day I would hear about doctors being paid with livestock for their services. It seems outrageous to me. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RETIREDFAN1 Posted November 11, 2016 Share Posted November 11, 2016 http://dailycaller.com/2016/11/10/trump-plans-to-defund-obamacare-on-day-one/?utm_campaign=atdailycaller&utm_source=Twitter&utm_medium=Social Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Coach Rab Posted November 11, 2016 Share Posted November 11, 2016 Heard that with a hard lean on Dr. Ben Carson being the head of education Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RETIREDFAN1 Posted November 11, 2016 Share Posted November 11, 2016 Heard that with a hard lean on Dr. Ben Carson being the head of education Hope he gets rid of the Department of Education..........Dr. Carson would be a great asset in some other field......... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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