Little-Acorn
06-13-2013, 11:22 AM
And the hits just keep on comin'.
Yes, you read that right. When lawmakers found out that they themselves would soon be subject to the same Obamacare rules and restrictions that they forced on everyone else, they started running like rabbits.
It's unfair, they are saying, it's destructive to our employees, the way we do business will be drastically affected as people quit or retire as a result of these new rules! Why, our insurance rates are going to skyrocket! And we won't get nearly as good care as we're used to!
And, inevitably, some of them are looking to make or extend a rule exempting themselves from the Obamacare they voted to impose on everyone else.
You can't make this stuff up, folks. Conservatives are just sitting back and shaking their head in weary disbelief. Somehow, "We told you so" just doesn't cover it.
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http://www.politico.com/story/2013/06/obamacare-lawmakers-health-insurance-92691.html#ixzz2W63muxJO
Obamacare? We were just leaving …
by ANNA PALMER and JAKE SHERMAN
6/13/13 5:13 AM EDT
Dozens of lawmakers and aides are so afraid that their health insurance premiums will skyrocket next year thanks to Obamacare that they are thinking about retiring early or just quitting.
The fear: Government-subsidized premiums will disappear at the end of the year under a provision in the health care law that nudges aides and lawmakers onto the government health care exchanges, which could make their benefits exorbitantly expensive.
Democratic and Republican leaders are taking the issue seriously, but first they need more specifics from the Office of Personnel Management on how the new rule should take effect — a decision that Capitol Hill sources expect by fall, at the latest. The administration has clammed up in advance of a ruling, sources on both sides of the aisle said.
If the issue isn’t resolved, and massive numbers of lawmakers and aides bolt, many on Capitol Hill fear it could lead to a brain drain just as Congress tackles a slew of weighty issues — like fights over the Tax Code and immigration reform.
The problem is far more acute in the House, where lawmakers and aides are generally younger and less wealthy. Sources said several aides have already given lawmakers notice that they’ll be leaving over concerns about Obamacare. Republican and Democratic lawmakers said the chatter about retiring now, to remain on the current health care plan, is constant.
Rep. John Larson, a Connecticut Democrat in leadership when the law passed, said he thinks the problem will be resolved.
“If not, I think we should begin an immediate amicus brief to say, ‘Listen this is simply not fair to these employees,’” Larson told POLITICO. “They are federal employees.”
Yes, you read that right. When lawmakers found out that they themselves would soon be subject to the same Obamacare rules and restrictions that they forced on everyone else, they started running like rabbits.
It's unfair, they are saying, it's destructive to our employees, the way we do business will be drastically affected as people quit or retire as a result of these new rules! Why, our insurance rates are going to skyrocket! And we won't get nearly as good care as we're used to!
And, inevitably, some of them are looking to make or extend a rule exempting themselves from the Obamacare they voted to impose on everyone else.
You can't make this stuff up, folks. Conservatives are just sitting back and shaking their head in weary disbelief. Somehow, "We told you so" just doesn't cover it.
-----------------------------------------
http://www.politico.com/story/2013/06/obamacare-lawmakers-health-insurance-92691.html#ixzz2W63muxJO
Obamacare? We were just leaving …
by ANNA PALMER and JAKE SHERMAN
6/13/13 5:13 AM EDT
Dozens of lawmakers and aides are so afraid that their health insurance premiums will skyrocket next year thanks to Obamacare that they are thinking about retiring early or just quitting.
The fear: Government-subsidized premiums will disappear at the end of the year under a provision in the health care law that nudges aides and lawmakers onto the government health care exchanges, which could make their benefits exorbitantly expensive.
Democratic and Republican leaders are taking the issue seriously, but first they need more specifics from the Office of Personnel Management on how the new rule should take effect — a decision that Capitol Hill sources expect by fall, at the latest. The administration has clammed up in advance of a ruling, sources on both sides of the aisle said.
If the issue isn’t resolved, and massive numbers of lawmakers and aides bolt, many on Capitol Hill fear it could lead to a brain drain just as Congress tackles a slew of weighty issues — like fights over the Tax Code and immigration reform.
The problem is far more acute in the House, where lawmakers and aides are generally younger and less wealthy. Sources said several aides have already given lawmakers notice that they’ll be leaving over concerns about Obamacare. Republican and Democratic lawmakers said the chatter about retiring now, to remain on the current health care plan, is constant.
Rep. John Larson, a Connecticut Democrat in leadership when the law passed, said he thinks the problem will be resolved.
“If not, I think we should begin an immediate amicus brief to say, ‘Listen this is simply not fair to these employees,’” Larson told POLITICO. “They are federal employees.”