GOP Taking Action on Failing Obamacare

As Senate Republicans work to fix the U.S. healthcare system, the Democrats have made fantastical and wild statements about the affects any change will have to people’s access to medical treatment. Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell today announced that the Senate would not vote on the GOP healthcare bill until after recess, to continue perfecting the policy specifics. We must not forget, however, that the Affordable Care Act has already done considerable damage to our healthcare system.

As pointed to in the RNLA’s annual National Policy Conference on May 5th, the Affordable Care Act is not good for anyone. Dennis Kirk, an RNLA Lifetime member among the audience, asked the panel: “When do you anticipate total failure of Obamacare and can we beat that before it gets there?” Michael Franc, Hoover Institute’s Director of DC Programs, answered Mr. Kirk’s question first:

If the black letter had been adhered to it would have happened already. It’s structurally not sustainable, and the only reason it has been in effect for this long, frankly, is that there has been this serial ignorance, or ignoring the actual language, and finding ways to direct subsidies in that really shouldn’t go there under the way the law is written.

Congressman Keith Rothfus (PA-12), also on the panel, related that Obamacare is already failing:

In many areas it’s already felt. We learned this week 94 out of 99 counties in Iowa will not have a single insurer on their exchange to choose from.

Needless to say, the GOP is taking the initiative to reform another failing government program, while the Democrats have marching orders for obstructionism.

On a side note: Ilya Shapiro, who was the third member of the RNLA panel, is celebrating his birthday today. Happy Birthday, Ilya!

Republican Leaders React to King v. Burwell Ruling

The Supreme Court released an opinion on King v. Burwell today that caused Republican leaders to express their disappointment in the legislative-like and politically charged ruling.

As Scalia stated,

…The Court’s decision reflects the philosophy that judges should endure whatever interpretive distortions it takes in order to correct a supposed flaw in the statutory machinery. That philosophy ignores the American people’s decision to give Congress “[a]ll legislative Powers” enumerated in the Constitution. Art. I, §1. They made Congress, not this Court, responsible for both making laws and mending them… Words no longer have meaning if an Exchange that is not established by a State is “established by the State.

House Speaker John Boehner declares,

ObamaCare is fundamentally broken, increasing health care costs for millions of Americans.  Today’s ruling doesn’t change that fact.  Republicans will continue to listen to American families and work to protect them from the consequences of ObamaCare.  And we will continue our efforts to repeal the law and replace it with patient-centered solutions that meet the needs of seniors, small business owners, and middle-class families.

House Republican Conference Chair Cathy McMorris Rodgers notes,

Today’s Supreme Court decision does not change one undeniable fact: Obamacare was broken yesterday, and it is broken today. While I respect the Court, I fundamentally disagree with its decision – one that sets a precarious precedent and jeopardizes Congress’s authority to write and execute our laws. Despite today’s ruling, Republicans will keep fighting. We will not waver in our fight to champion health care reforms that put patients – not Washington, D.C. bureaucrats – first.

Senator Ted Cruz highlighted the Supreme Court’s politically charged decision as Cruz stated today,

Today’s decision in King v. Burwell is judicial activism, plain and simple. For the second time in just a few years, a handful of unelected judges has rewritten the text of Obamacare in order to impose this failed law on millions of Americans. The first time, the Court ignored federal law and magically transformed a statutory ‘penalty’ into a ‘tax.’ Today, these robed Houdinis transmogrified a ‘federal exchange’ into an exchange ‘established by the State.’

Senator Rand Paul said,

This decision turns both the rule of law and common sense on its head. Obamacare raises taxes, harms patients and doctors, and is the wrong fix for America's health care system.

Senator Marco Rubio tweeted,

I disagree with the Court’s ruling and believe they have once again erred in trying to correct the mistakes made by President Obama... and Congress in forcing ObamaCare on the American people. Despite the Court’s decision, ObamaCare is still a bad law that is having a negative impact on our country and on millions of Americans. I remain committed to repealing this bad law and replacing it... I remain committed to repealing this bad law and replacing it... We need Consumer Care, not ObamaCare.

Senator Lindsey Graham stated,

This case was brought before the Supreme Court because President Obama and his Democratic allies in Congress rammed through their hastily and deeply flawed legislation to create Obamacare, apparently without even proofreading their own bill. The result has been a disaster from day one. Today’s decision only reinforces why we need a president who will bring about real reform that repeals Obamacare and replaces it with a plan that expands consumer choice, increases coverage, delivers better value for the dollar, and gives states more control, without stifling job creation.

Governor Scott Walker said,

Today’s Supreme Court ruling upholding the administration’s implementation of ObamaCare means Republicans in the House and Senate must redouble their efforts to repeal and replace this destructive and costly law. From the beginning, it was clear that ObamaCare would fail the American people and this has proven to be true across the country and in Wisconsin.

Governor Jeb Bush noted,

I am disappointed by today’s Supreme Court ruling in the King v. Burwell case. But this decision is not the end of the fight against Obamacare. This fatally-flawed law imposes job-killing mandates, causes spending in Washington to skyrocket by $1.7 trillion, raises taxes by $1 trillion and drives up health care costs. Instead of fixing our health care system, it made the problems worse.

Dr. Ben Carson also tweeted,

Deeply disappointed by #SCOTUS ruling. Fundamental increase of govt control. I'm working to ensure next Pres repeals and replaces #Obamacare… We must #Repeal and replace #Obamacare with sensible consumer empowering solutions that remove govt from the patient/doctor relationship.

Carly Fiorina stated,

It is outrageous that the Supreme Court once again rewrote ObamaCare to save this deeply flawed law despite the plain text and in the face of overwhelming evidence that the law is not working for the majority of Americans. ObamaCare has not lived up to what we were promised. Instead of more affordable care, premiums are rising.

Mike Huckabee said,

Today's King v. Burwell decision, which protects and expands ObamaCare, is an out-of-control act of judicial tyranny. Our Founding Fathers didn't create a "do-over" provision in our Constitution that allows unelected, Supreme Court justices the power to circumvent Congress and rewrite bad laws. The Supreme Court cannot legislate from the bench, ignore the Constitution, and pass a multi-trillion dollar "fix" to ObamaCare simply because Congress misread what the states would actually do. The architects and authors of ObamaCare were intentional in the way they wrote the law.