NTU urges all Senators to vote “YES” on Senator Cruz’s “Restore Growth First” amendment to H.R. 933, the FY13 Continuing Resolution. This amendment would delay funding of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (PPACA).
As we inch closer to full implementation of PPACA, the law’s damaging effects are increasingly having a negative impact across the nation. Employers have been bracing themselves for new burdensome regulations and higher costs by eliminating health insurance coverage for part-time employees. Some are cutting back employee hours to part-time status to avoid paying for expensive new plans. At a time when far too many Americans remain unemployed, small businesses are avoiding expansion in order to keep their workforces under the 50-person threshold for “large” employers and the slew of additional mandates and penalties they could incur.
PPACA’s 2.3 percent medical device excise tax that went into effect January 1 is already hitting manufacturers hard. In anticipation of the tax, some companies in this sector began freezing workforces or laying off workers at the end of 2012, and so far thousands have lost their jobs or have seen their salaries stagnate. Seniors will soon see the 2.3 percent excise tax drive up health care costs, and watch PPACA’s 3.8 percent investment surtax eat away at returns from their retirement assets.
Although a few parts of the 2010 law were blocked from taking effect, the price tag of executing PPACA remains unbearably high. In fact, a July 2012 Congressional Budget Office (CBO) report indicated an additional 3 to 4 million individuals will remain uninsured and premium hikes of $400 per family in the individual market will occur. This is on top of the $2,100 per family increase CBO predicted in 2009.
Looking ahead there is little doubt that the implementation of PPACA will continue to further damage our economy, hurt small businesses, and make accessing and paying for health care even more challenging for individuals – all with a tremendously heavy burden for taxpayers. Repealing PPACA should be a high priority for Congress.
Roll call votes on this amendment will be heavily weighted in our annual Rating of Congress and a “YES” vote will be considered the pro- taxpayer position.
If you have any questions, please contact NTU Federal Affairs Manager Nan Swift at (703) 683-5700