Senators Diagnose ObamaCrapCare And The Outlook Looks Bad

Doctors Coburn And Barrasso: Obamacare Prognosis Not So Good

April 2, 2014 by Sam Rolley 

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A report released by Senators Tom Coburn (R-Okla.) and John Barrasso (R-Wyo.), both of whom are physicians, this week gives President Barack Obama’s healthcare overhaul a checkup. The Senators’ prognosis for the health of Obamacare: “Outlook not so good.”

In their report, titled “Prognosis,” the lawmakers revisit Obamacare concerns outlined in previous reports dating back to 2010.

“For millions of Americans, Obamacare itself has become a pre-existing condition that has limited their access to quality, affordable health care,” Coburn said in a statement. “As we warned in our previous reports, Obamacare is fundamentally flawed. The law strengthens the hand of government and weakens the hand of doctors and patients. Obamacare is cutting choices, not costs, and costs will likely continue to rise.”

In 2010 the Senators claimed that President Obama’s “keep your plan” promise was bunk. In their report, the doctors say that their original diagnosis not only is confirmed but that the situation is actually worse than they had imagined.

“Despite President Obama and Democrats’ promises that ‘if you like your plan you can keep it,’ more than five million people in 35 states have lost their current health insurance plans due to Obamacare,” the report says.

The lawmakers go on to note that many employers have also chosen to drop coverage for part-time employees because of Obamacare. They also point out that once the deadline by which plans “grandfathered in” must meet additional healthcare requirements is reached in 2017 more cancellations will occur.

The report goes on to note that the lawmakers’ prediction that Obamacare would send healthcare costs through the roof has been vindicated.

They cite the following as evidence:

“Of the 51 states studied, all experienced health insurance rate increases, with 44 of those states experiencing triple digit percentage increases in premiums for the lowest priced coverage. Pre-ACA premiums average $62.00 monthly, while post-ACA premiums average $187.08 per month, a $125.08, or 202 percent, increase.” -Sam Cappellanti, American Action Forum

“A study by Avalere Health found that ‘consumers could face steep cost-sharing requirements—like co-payments, co-insurance and deductibles—layered on top of their monthly premiums … furthermore, there is a risk that patients could forgo needed care when faced with high upfront deductibles.’” -Kyle Cheney, Politico

“The ACA imposes an excise tax on insurance plans with an $8 billion cost the CBO expects to be passed to the consumer in the form of premium increases…Over the next decade, the HIT is estimated to cost the average individual $2,171 and family $5,140 in additional premiums.” -Sam Cappellanti, American Action Forum

Some of the lawmakers’ other Obamacare predictions are still developing, according to the report.

Coburn and Barrasso previously predicted that the healthcare law would lead to the loss of as many as 2 million American jobs— but because the Obama Administration delayed the employer mandate several times, the full impact of the law on employment is not yet known. The outlook, however, is still not good.

“The simple fact is the employer mandate creates three bad choices for businesses. They can either offer government approved insurance that many simply will not be able to afford, pay a tax penalty, or get their number of full-time employees below fifty by either cutting hours or not hiring new workers. None of these choices will help businesses grow or increase the amount they can afford to pay their employees,” the report says. “When the President sold the American people his health reform policy, he failed to mention that many would be making less because of his law.”

Coburn and Barrasso also predicted that the Internal Revenue Service will be unable enforce the individual mandate tax and it will fail, leading to higher healthcare costs for all Americans. The lawmakers’ prognosis for the individual mandate: “still developing, outlook is not promising.”

From the report:

We said without “the usual tax-like penalties for noncompliance,” the “relatively low-cost penalties and anemic enforcement [of the individual mandate] will create an incentive for millions of Americans to game the system and only buy health insurance when they are sick… All this means that while IRS may still harass millions of Americans, the individual mandate will largely be ineffective in broadening the risk pool.”

…

It is too early to determine whether or not the individual mandate will work since it only went into effect this January, but the early evidence shows the IRS may be unable to enforce the tax.

Another of the lawmakers’ still-developing predictions is that Obamacare would force thousands of uninsured Americans into Medicaid.

“Our estimate of the number of people added to Medicaid is higher than the actual number of individuals determined to be newly eligible. However, not all states have expanded their Medicaid programs, which has affected the number of eligibility determinations, and the number may continue to rise,” the lawmakers report.

Coburn and Barrasso note that the report is not an “exhaustive list” of the many problems which plague Obamacare, but provides enough evidence that the healthcare law’s negative impact on the Nation are not due to “minor imperfections.”

“As doctors, we know that Americans should be in charge of their own healthcare decisions—not Washington,” Barrasso said. “Over the past four years, we’ve highlighted the negative side effects of the healthcare law for patients, providers and taxpayers. Our new report confirms again exactly how Americans across the country are losing their insurance plan, watching their costs increase, and paying higher taxes.”

“It’s time to repeal this law and replace it with step by step reform that focuses on care instead of coverage,” he said.

Read the lawmakers’ full report here.