| The Honorable Ted Cruz United States Senate 185 Dirksen Senate Office Building Washington, DC 20510 | The Honorable Tom Graves United States House of Representatives 432 Cannon House Office Building Washington, DC 20515 |
Dear Senator Cruz and Congressman Graves:
On behalf of the 362,000-member National Taxpayers Union (NTU), I write in support of the “Defund ObamaCare Act,” S. 1292 and H.R. 2682 in the Senate and House, respectively. By prohibiting or rescinding future and prior appropriations used to enact provisions of the President’s health care law, this legislation would effect a permanent delay of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (PPACA).
Only two weeks ago the Obama Administration unilaterally elected to delay the employer mandate for one year. Other portions of PPACA have similarly been found to be unworkable including the Community Living Assistance Services and Supports Act (which was repealed in the New Year’s Day 2013 budget deal) and the 1099 reporting requirements for small businesses (which was repealed in April of 2011). Now that numerous provisions of the law, such as the 2.3 percent excise tax on medical devices, have proven to be job killers, bipartisan support for repeal is gaining ground in both the House and Senate. And despite the Department of Health and Human Services repeatedly moving benchmarks over the past year, both the health insurance exchanges set up by states and the federal government are unlikely to meet theOctober 1, 2013 implementation target, according to the Government Accountability Office.
The actions of the White House in delaying the employer mandate and waiving employer verification for exchange enrollment is a blunt acknowledgement of the regulatory hurdles that are bogging down the full enactment of PPACA day by day. The stark impracticality of the legislation is compounded by dire predictions that it will fail to achieve its goal of increasing “affordable care.” The Congressional Budget Office (CBO) reported in July 2012 that under PPACA, an additional 3 to 4 million individuals will remain uninsured and families could see premium hikes of $400 in the individual market, on top of the $2,100 per family increase the CBO predicted in 2009.
With a $1.8 trillion gross cost over the next ten years, taxpayers shouldn’t be on the hook to continue funding what even Senator Baucus (D-MT) is calling a “train wreck.” Based on PPACA’s short but dismal track record, taxpayers have no confidence that more money and more time will improve on that outcome. Defunding PPACA and replacing this legislative boondoggle with free market reforms that get Big Government out of the doctor’s office should be a priority for Congress. NTU is pleased to endorse S. 1292 and H.R. 2682 as the first step in this important process; we urge all Senators and House Members to cosponsor this legislation and work toward its swift enactment.
Sincerely,
Nan Swift
Federal Affairs Manager