Former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney's narrow win in the Iowa caucuses and his lead in the New Hampshire primary could catapult him to the GOP presidential nomination, but if he is to have any hope of gaining favor with conservative voters to get elected in November, he must escape the chains of Romneycare. Romney has been unwilling to repudiate the health reform he signed into law in 2006, … [Read more...] about Mitt Romney’s Achilles’ Heel
Comments to HHS on Medical Loss Ratio Requirements
The MLR rules as drafted discriminate against Health Savings Accounts (HSAs) and similar high-deductible health plans in a number of ways. These accounts provide employers, employees, and individuals with an option to purchase coverage with a larger deductible so that the polices function more like traditional “insurance” — covering medical expenses above a certain threshold. Policy holders save … [Read more...] about Comments to HHS on Medical Loss Ratio Requirements
ObamaCare sends costs skyrocketing
There may never have been a law more misnamed than the Affordable Care Act. President Obama's health-care-overhaul law already is driving up health-insurance costs for businesses and consumers and will inflict even higher costs on American taxpayers in the years ahead. Obama repeatedly promised the American people he would cut a typical family's premium $2,500 a year before the end of his … [Read more...] about ObamaCare sends costs skyrocketing
December 2011 Highlights
Health insurers are being forced to leave markets across the country because onerous ObamaCare regulations already are taking effect, and the first casualties are small businesses and the health insurance agents who serve them. In December, Grace-Marie Turner testified before a congressional Small Business Committee hearing entitled “New Medical Loss Ratios: Increasing Health Care Value or Just … [Read more...] about December 2011 Highlights
Ryan-Wyden: The best Medicare proposal yet
Oregon Democratic Sen. Ron Wyden is getting hammered by the White House for his courageous move to join House Budget Chairman Paul Ryan in co-sponsoring the best Medicare modernization proposal yet. The Ryan-Wyden plan would move Medicare to a more modern defined-benefit program and give seniors a choice of competing plans -- plans that would have an incentive to innovate and produce the best … [Read more...] about Ryan-Wyden: The best Medicare proposal yet
Ryan-Wyden: The Best Medicare Proposal Yet
Oregon Democratic senator Ron Wyden is getting hammered by the White House for his courageous move to join House Budget Committee chairman Paul Ryan in co-sponsoring the best Medicare-modernization proposal yet. The Ryan-Wyden plan would move Medicare to a more modern defined-benefit program and give seniors a choice of competing plans — plans that would have an incentive to innovate and … [Read more...] about Ryan-Wyden: The Best Medicare Proposal Yet
Congressional testimony on MLR rules
ObamaCare is forcing health insurers out of markets across the country, and the first casualties are small businesses and the health insurance agents who serve them. The House Small Business Committee's Subcommittee on Investigations, Oversight and Regulations invited Grace-Marie Turner to testify on December 15, 2011 at a hearing on an obscure and complex provision in the health overhaul law … [Read more...] about Congressional testimony on MLR rules
New Medical Loss Ratios: Increasing Health Care Value or Just Eliminating Jobs? Testimony before the House Committee on Small Business Subcommittee on Investigations, Oversight and Regulations
The Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (PPACA) already is leading to a loss of affordable options for health insurance for small employers, to a loss of jobs inside and outside the health sector, and to higher health costs that make hiring new workers a risky proposition, especially for struggling small businesses. The percentage of small businesses offering health insurance has … [Read more...] about New Medical Loss Ratios: Increasing Health Care Value or Just Eliminating Jobs? Testimony before the House Committee on Small Business Subcommittee on Investigations, Oversight and Regulations