Rising Health Care Costs Cut off Insurance for Thousands
Rising Health Care Costs Cut off Insurance for Thousands
(Washington, D.C.) – With enrollment set to begin under the second year of the Affordable Care Act (ACA), also known as Obamacare, Wal-Mart has announced that it will stop offering health care coverage to 30,000 part-time workers. Reports indicate that the health care mandates of Obamacare make it unaffordable for the company. Wal-Mart joins such companies as Home Depot and Target, which have also been forced to limit coverage due to cost increases related to the health care law. This week the New York-based Freelancers Union joined the list of those that have been forced to limit coverage due to cost increases related to the health care law. Freelancers was previously hailed as a model for the health care law, and had received received $340 million in taxpayer funding.
Separately, the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) has begun to permit insurers to test the revamped Healthcare.gov website, which millions will use to purchase insurance beginning November 15. HHS is requiring all testers to sign non-disclosure agreements however, ensuring that they do not publicly discuss their experience with the new site.
Jorge Lima, Policy Director of The LIBRE Initiative, released the following statement:
"It's been a year since enrollment began under the new health care law – a year full of repeated promises to fix the negative effects of this law. But instead of fixes and improvements, all we have is more empty promises, and more negative effects. How many people must lose the insurance policies they are counting on before the White House and other supporters of the law begin to make good on their promises?
Bad as it is, the problems go beyond lost insurance coverage. A new study shows that the health care law will reduce the workforce by 4 million people – at a time when too many are giving up on finding work already. 1.24 million Hispanics are already being forced into part time labor, and this law will only serve to make that number increase – with women hit disproportionately by these negative effects. If the president continues to refuse to consider changes to this law, millions more will be hurt. It is time to change course."
For interviews with a LIBRE representative, please contact: Brian Faughnan, 703-678-4581 or Steven Cruz, 202-578-6173
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