Who Cares About Health Care?

OK, this is going to hurt – TWICE

Congress (GOP) is hell bent on repealing the ACA, right?

1-Ouch) Some of us will lose health care insurance and it’s pretty certain most everybody else will pay more (could be as much as $3,900 / year) for their coverage.  Ref. the following article from Time.

The Obamacare Repeal Is a Money-Grab for the Already Rich

2-Ouch) The repeal will include costs that will increase the federal budget deficit (ref. Politico article below) which will be paid for by our (your) taxes.

What would the impact be if the Affordable Care Act is repealed?

There will certainly be an outcry from constituents when they hear about the added cost.  Right?  Au contraire.  The House GOP (Rep. McCarthy, Kevin [R-CA-23] (Introduced 01/03/2017)) has introduced House Resolution 5  that expressly forbids the Congressional Budget Office from reporting or tracking ANY costs related to the repeal of the ACA.  (Link to and pertinent portion of the resolution follows.)

H.Res.5 - Adopting rules for the One Hundred Fifteenth Congress.

(1) CONGRESSIONAL BUDGET OFFICE ANALYSIS OF PROPOSALS.—The Director of the Congressional Budget Office shall, to the extent practicable, prepare an estimate of whether a bill or joint resolution reported by a committee (other than the Committee on Appropriations), or amendment thereto or conference report thereon, would cause, relative to current law, a net increase in direct spending in excess of $5,000,000,000 in any of the 4 consecutive 10-fiscal year periods beginning with the first fiscal year that is 10 fiscal years after the current fiscal year.

(2) POINT OF ORDER.—It shall not be in order to consider any bill or joint resolution reported by a committee, or amendment thereto or conference report thereon, that would cause a net increase in direct spending in excess of $5,000,000,000 in any of the 4 consecutive 10-fiscal year periods described in paragraph (1).

(3) DETERMINATIONS OF BUDGET LEVELS.—For purposes of this subsection, the levels of net increases in direct spending shall be determined on the basis of estimates provided by the chair of the Committee on the Budget.

(4) LIMITATION.—This subsection shall not apply to any bill or joint resolution, or amendment thereto or conference report thereon—

(A) repealing the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act and title I and subtitle B of title II of the Health Care and Education Affordability Reconciliation Act of 2010;

(B) reforming the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act and the Health Care and Education Affordability Reconciliation Act of 2010; or

(C) for which the chair of the Committee on the Budget has made an adjustment to the allocations, levels, or limits contained in the most recently adopted concurrent resolution on the budget.