In a CNN op-ed, Sen. Orrin Hatch says Obamacare sticker shock threatens the healthcare reform law much more than any Court ruling.
Writes Hatch:
Right now, many insurance plans from states across the nation are proposing dramatic rate increases, and recent headlines make that clear:
An average of 23% in Illinois; 25% in North Carolina; 31% in Oklahoma; 36% in Tennessee; and a whopping 54% in Minnesota, according to an article in the New York Times.
In fact, Congress’s nonpartisan scorekeeper, the Congressional Budget Office (CBO), has longed warned of this, and most recently forecast that premiums are set to increase overall by about 6% per year.
Earlier this year, millions of consumers across the country learned they might be further squeezed by Obamacare’s sticker shock.
At a time when wages remain essentially stagnant and the median family income remains largely unchanged, the failure of the law to address premium hikes head on is unacceptable for families working to make ends meet.
The administration argues that under the health law, these increases will be alleviated by subsidy contributions for patients. That may be the case, but in the end, some families will still pay more and hardworking American taxpayers will still foot the bill for those increasing costs.
The CBO has said subsidies for health plans purchased on the exchange will rise sharply — up to 14.2% of GDP by 2040 if nothing is changed.
