States, U.S. Government Create New Health Care Insurance Bailout
States, U.S. Government Create New Health Care Insurance Bailout
Law Had Already Provided More Than $5 Billion in Bailouts
(Washington, D.C.) – Although the Affordable Care Act (ACA), also known as Obamacare, imposes an $8 billion tax on insurance companies, the federal government is working with a number of states to pay part of that tax on behalf of those companies. According to press reports, states and the federal government will give insurers at least $700 million this year to pay these taxes. Other insurers are passing the cost of the tax onto policyholders in the form of higher premiums. Whether through the new taxpayer bailout or higher premiums, ordinary Americans are bearing a substantial part of the cost that supporters of the law said would be borne by insurance companies.
The new bailout for insurance companies is in addition to these specifically included in the health care law. The White House has budgeted more than $5 billion for these taxpayer bailouts. The $700 million will be added to that cost.
Daniel Garza, Executive Director of The LIBRE Initiative, released the following statement:
"What good is a health care regime that can't survive without billions in taxpayer subsidies each year? The American people were told that the law would widen choices, lower costs, and expand coverage – reducing the need for taxpayer dollars to help the uninsured. Now the same taxpayers are paying billons for bailouts to the insurers. This is not an improvement. It's just another broken promise, and another unnecessary government-imposed cost on hard-working taxpayers. And it comes on top of higher premiums and canceled policies for the millions who were satisfied with the insurance they had.
It's time for Washington to deliver on promises made to the American people. And it's incumbent on the president to begin to admit the problems with the system he pushed through Congress rather than continue to rely on taxpayer money to keep it afloat."
For interviews with a LIBRE representative, please contact: Brian Faughnan, 571-257-3309 or Steven Cruz, 202-578-6173
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