“The Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act, a.k.a. ObamaCare, is to the law of unintended consequences what Newton’s apple was to the law of gravity: the illustration that bonks us on the head with its obviousness. Practically every week since its passage has added a new dimension of mirth to Nancy Pelosi’s punchline for the ages, that we had to pass the bill to find out what is in it. Out of the mouths of babes and clueless politicians . . .”
“ObamaCare is not that better way. In its attempt to reform healthcare, the administration has created overlapping layers of laws and regulations intended to anticipate everything that could go wrong and prevent it. Every problem—the uninsured, rising insurance premiums, ineffective and expensive care—is addressed. Every solution further centralizes power and decision making in Washington. The promises do not come cheap.”
“Still, as we reach this six-month milestone, there is one thing about health-care reform that we can celebrate. According to the latest Rasmussen poll, 61 percent of Americans want the law repealed. The president probably won’t mention that, either.”
When the Congressional Budget Office develops budget estimates, they use a static analysis that only measures direct revenues and expenditures. A dynamic analysis looks at the amount of lost productivity from ObamaCare’s huge tax increases to determine that the economy will produce $706 billion less than it would otherwise. This lost value means the actual debt will be $753 billion higher after 10 years because of ObamaCare.
“ObamaCare’s a painful shot in the wallet. A Greenwich Village resident was socked with an eye-popping 25 percent increase in health premiums — and his insurance company is slapping part of the blame on President Obama’s health-care overhaul that took effect yesterday… Doug Gowland’s monthly bill will jump $140 — from $565 to $705 — under the hike, according to a letter he received from insurer EmblemHealth. In the notice, EmblemHealth told Gowland, who is healthy, ‘The proposed rate increase includes two components: a basic increase on your type plan and an increase due to the cost of enhanced benefits required by the new federal Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act.'”
“Two of Minnesota’s biggest health plans said Thursday they have temporarily suspended sales of individual health insurance policies because of uncertainty related to the new federal health reform law… Insurance officials said the industry has been scrambling to figure out the new federal regulations for months.”
“One of the major impacts of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act is that individuals and families will see higher health insurance premiums. Obamacare imposes several costly new mandates and restrictions on health insurers and providers that will raise health cares costs and therefore premiums. This paper lists a dozen factors that will contribute to higher premium costs.”
Justifications for ObamaCare’s individual mandate under the Necessary and Proper Clause and the Commerce Clause both fail to adhere to recent Supreme Court precedents. This suggests that the overturning of ObamaCare is plausible under a realistic analysis of contemporary jurisprudence and not merely an originalist interpretation of the Constitution.
“Competition used to discourage insurers from providing lousy access to care, but under ObamaCare competition will reward skimping. Under ObamaCare’s price controls, insurers that gain a reputation for providing quality coverage to the sick will attract sick people and go out of business. Insurers that gain a reputation for providing lousy access to care will drive away sick people and thrive.”
“Senator Max Baucus recently admitted that he never read the new health care law. But that hasn’t stopped him from trying to re-write it after the fact, in a way that would drive more health plans from the market and give consumers less choice.”