NO DELAY FOR INDIVIDUAL MANDATE & EXCHANGES DEBUT
Enrollment Picks Up As Drop Cycle Begins
Employers Drop Health Coverage, Insurers Drop Doctors, Doctors Drop Patients
(WASHINGTON, D.C.) – Today marks the launch of the Affordable Care Act's online exchanges — also called "marketplaces" — designed to enroll millions of Americans into health insurance under ObamaCare. Independent Women's Forum senior policy analyst Hadley Heath released the following statement on the debut:
"One day we may look back in history at the implementation of ObamaCare as a turning point for the American health system, for our economy, and for our freedoms. The health exchanges kick off today and millions of Americans will be seeing that the Administration cannot make good on its promises of lower premium costs. Just as millions of Americans have been disappointed that they haven't been able to keep their doctor or their insurance, they will find that they are expected to pay more for government-approved insurance, even if that isn't what they want.
"This is just another step in the process of Americans learning what this law actually entails. We've seen how this unaffordable law will result in reduced access to care: Employers will be forced to drop health coverage, insurers will be forced to drop doctors, and doctors will be forced to drop patients. We've seen workers hours cut back, companies afraid to hire workers, and employers large and small struggling to make sense of the law's requirements.
"Today, there may be a lot of talk about problems with implementation–technological glitches and systems that aren't ready for prime time. Yet this isn't a glitch. The ObamaCare law is itself was deeply flawed. It did not take into account the important differences between coverage and care. It misguidedly attempts to reduce costs with a government-run subsidy scheme, which simply moves money from one bucket to another. It forces companies and families to adopt a one-size-fits-all health policy that doesn't reflect our needs, preferences, or values.
"Women have been told that ObamaCare is a particular boon to them, but millions of women are going to increasingly learn the downsides of government involvement in crafting one-size-fits-all plans for health care. The intent of ObamaCare may be to shift costs from women to men, but women aren't helped when men are put at a disadvantage. Millions of young men may not sign up for insurance. That's bad news for the system's finances but also for the women who worry about their sons, brothers, and friends going without insurance. Women tend to manage family finances, and many will be disappointed that rather than making health care more affordable, insurance may be taking an even bigger bite out of the family budget.
"Today may however be the beginning of a different series of events and a turn in history. Today could be the day Americans say, 'No more.' Today could be the day more Americans decided we need to ditch this harmful, tangled law, change course, and adopt other, better reforms that rely on market forces, competition, and consumer choices to drive lower prices, better quality, and more personalized coverage and care. It's up to us."
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www.iwf.org
Independent Women's Forum is a non-partisan, 501(c)(3) research and educational institution dedicated to expanding the conservative coalition, both by increasing the number of women who understand and value the benefits of limited government, personal liberty, and free markets, and by countering those who seek to ever expand government in the name of protecting women.