Health Care Cost Rising At Slowest Rate Since 1961

The revised third quarter economic data contained some good news for President Obama and the Democrats. Thanks to Obamacare healthcare costs have risen at their slowest rate since 1961.

From The White House:

Prices of health care services have risen just 0.7 percent over the past four quarters, extending the recent period of exceptionally slow health care price inflation, while expanding coverage has driven faster growth in aggregate utilization of health care services. Prior to 2015, an increase in health care services prices as low as the 0.7 percent increase over the most recent four quarters had not been seen since 1961.

New England Journal of Medicine Comments On Court Challenge To Obamacare

New England Journal of Medicine

The U.S. Supreme Court's surprise announcement on November 7 that it would hear King v. Burwell struck fear in the hearts of supporters of the Affordable Care Act (ACA). At stake is the legality of an Internal Revenue Service (IRS) rule extending tax credits to the 4.5 million people who bought their health plans in the 34 states that declined to establish their own health insurance exchanges under the ACA. The case hinges on enigmatic statutory language that seems to link the amount of tax credits to a health plan purchased “through an Exchange established by the State.” According to the plaintiffs in King, that language means that consumers who buy insurance through federally run exchanges don't qualify for subsidies. The Court's decision to hear the case without a split between appellate courts suggests that at least four justices harbor serious doubts about the IRS rule's validity. 

Joe and Nancy, sittin' in a tree...

Obamacare Already Benefitting The Economy

Ken O’Brien

Republicans have been proven completely wrong as the Affordable Care Act helped both personal income and spending increase in January.

On March 3^rd The Wall Street Journal reported in an article titled” Obamacare Effects Account for Most of Income, Spending Increases”:

The Affordable Care Act, President Barack Obama’s signature health law, is already boosting household income and spending.

The Commerce Department reported Monday that consumer spending rose a better-than-expected 0.4% and personal incomes climbed 0.3% in January. The new health-care law accounted for a big chunk of the increase on both                                                                      fronts.

Wingnut Carson Coming To Worcester

Ken O’Brien

Dr. Ben Carson

The right loves nothing more than discrediting a progressive voice by being able to label it as coming from Hollywood or academia. But they are quick to cite someone’s credentials when that someone is parroting their favorite talking points.

Such is the case with Dr. Ben Carson who will be visiting Worcester for a much-touted speaking engagement in January. In a previous incarnation he was a widely respected neurosurgeon. With his anti-Obama speech at the National Prayer Breakfast, Carson became one of the right’s favorite new talking heads

To Tell The Truth, The Half-Truth And Nothing But Half-Truths (About Obamacare)

Hannity's Credibility On Obamacare Attack Shredded

Writing in October 18th's Salon Magazine Eric Stern says:

I happened to turn on the Hannity show on Fox News last Friday evening. “Average Americans are feeling the pain of Obamacare and the healthcare overhaul train wreck,” Hannity announced, “and six of them are here tonight to tell us their stories.”  Three married couples were neatly arranged in his studio, the wives seated and the men standing behind them, like game show contestants.

94% Of Americans Will Pay Less Than Expected For Obamacare

A report issued by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services’ Office of the Assistant Secretary for Planning and Evaluation (ASPE) shows that in about 94 percent of cases the Congressional Budget Office overestimated how high premiums would be. Those estimates were initially made at the time Obamacare was being debated.

The First Debate: Mitt Romney's Five Biggest Lies

Ken O’Brien

Mitt Romney turned in a polished performance in the presidential debate – and revealed himself to be an accomplished and unapologetic liar. In an evening where he sought to slice and dice the president with statistics, Romney baldly misrepresented his own policy prescriptions, made up numbers to fit his attacks and buried clear contrasts with the president under a heaping pile of BS.

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Here are Mittens’ five most mendacious statements: 

Obamacare Robs Medicare of $716 Billion – Mostly False - Politifact

Mitt Romney and Paul Ryan say Barack Obama robs Medicare of more than $700 billion to pay for Obamacare

From Politifact

Over the last week the Republican candidates for President and Vice-President have been perpetuating a canard that Obamacare guts Medicare. Once again there are those who will believe whatever they want to believe, regardless of the facts.

However, in an effort to provide a counterpoint to this tactic of perpetuating misinformation through repetition, I am replicating the full analysis of this claim from Politifact. Anyone who is politically aware knows that this is a source that has been frequently criticized by Liberals and Progressives (google it).

I hope that this information will constitute an antidote to a developing pattern of spewing misinformation as fact in an unbridled effort at deception. 

Obamacare Has Already Saved Seniors $4 Billion

Ken O’Brien

The Centers for Medicare And Medicaid Services (CMS) released data showing that over 5.2 million seniors and people with disabilities have already saved nearly $4 billion on prescription drugs as a direct result of the Affordable Care Act.

The CMS data also showed that over 1 million people with Medicare saved an average of $629 on prescriptions in the “donut hole” coverage gap since the beginning of the year. 

More Republican Disinformation On Obamacare?

Ken O’Brien

The latest Republican talking point on Obamacare since the Supreme Court decision upholding the individual mandate has begun to emerge.

The latest use of it to come to my attention was this morning on the MSNBC program The Daily Rundown with Chuck Todd. On the program Senator John Cornyn (R – Texas) spoke of the 22 other taxes in Obamacare in addition to the individual mandate.

Now, frankly, I didn’t know of these 22 other taxes. I knew there were a couple, very few that affected any significant number of people. The experience here in Massachusetts has already shown that the tax penalty for lack of insurance will affect only one percent of the population.

Chief Romney Spokesman: Obamacare Penalty Is Not A Tax

Ken O’Brien

 Eric Fehrnstrom

MSNBC - Eric Fehrnstrom, the Romney spokesman made famous for his 'Etch-a-Sketch' comment, illuminated the struggle his candidate has had in explaining his evolving position on health care reform while appearing on MSNBC’s Daily Rundown Monday.

Republicans, including Speaker of the House John Boehner, have used the Supreme Court's ruling on  the Obama administration's health care law to criticize the president for a new tax on Americans. (The justices ruled the law was constitutional because the government is allowed to levy taxes; The law includes a fine for those who do not comply.) But this causes a problem for the Mitt Romney presidential campaign, which is anti-tax, because Romney passed a very similar health care reform law that included a penalty fee when he was governor of Massachusetts.

Obamacare: Not A Job-Killer

Ken O’Brien

Opponents to the Affordable Care Act, better known as Obamacare, argue that it will kill jobs. They reason that forcing employers to provide insurance for their employees will raise their costs, and that they’ll cover those costs by cutting wages and other compensation, and ultimately by shedding jobs. But is that true?

The nonpartisan Urban Institute decided to find out. It did so by looking at what has happened in Massachusetts, whose health reform law, passed in 2006, is broadly similar to the Affordable Care Act. It found no evidence whatever that health care reform, and mandated coverage, killed jobs: 

Breaking News: Obamacare upheld by court.

In a dramatic victory for President Barack Obama, the Supreme Court upheld the 2010 health care law today, preserving Obama’s landmark legislative achievement.

The majority opinion was written by Chief Justice John Roberts, who held that the law was a valid exercise of Congress’s power to tax.

The decision came as a sharp rebuff and disappointment to congressional Republicans, many of whom had expected the court to strike down at least some parts of the law.

Passage of the law in 2010 had come at a high political cost, with 14 House Democrats in competitive districts losing their seats in the 2010 elections in part due to their votes for the bill and six Democratic Senate candidates who’d voted for the bill also lost their elections in 2010.

Clerical Censorship

Ken O’Brien

I like to think of Fr. Peter Preble as a respected colleague.

As such, we should be able to disagree on certain points without rancor.

However, there appears to be one area where this is not possible.

That is the area of whether the Obama Administration and the Department of Health and Human Services are engaging in an assault on religious freedom through the Affordable Care Act.

Today he published a lengthy screed on his blog titled Courage in Leadership repeating all the same old attacks. I responded with the following comment. 

Can The Government Compel You To Buy Something?

Ken O’Brien

Central to the opposition to the Affordable Care Act (“Obamacare”) is whether the government can compel citizens to purchase a good or service.

Set aside all the legal issues about the Commerce Clause (Article 1, Section 8 of the U. S. Constitution).

The Tea Party yahoos, led by their champions Sarah Palin and Michelle Bachman, financed by the Koch brothers and Dick Armey and enabled by Fox News, launched into their hysteria shortly after the signing of the Affordable Care Act. 

Will The Supreme Court Sidestep The Constitutionality of Obamacare?

Ken O’Brien

Almost overlooked in all of the hyperventilating from both sides regarding the Supreme Court’s hearing on the Affordable Care Act is the focus of the first day of proceedings.

Monday’s hearing will be devoted to the applicability of an obscure 1867 law called the Anti-Injunction Act.

Oops!

Republicans Use Commerce Clause to Justify Their Own Health Care Legislation

Ken O’Brien

On Monday the U.S. Supreme Court will begin an unprecedented three days of oral arguments on the constitutionality of the Affordable Care Act (“Obamacare”).

One of the key components of the Act is the “individual mandate” requiring all citizens to have health insurance.

In the prior week the Republican-dominated House of Representatives found themselves on the edge of an abyss that would have undermined the challenge of this component of the Act.

Romney’s Health Issue

Ken O’Brien

No single issue has been a greater focus of those who oppose the Obama Administration than the Affordable Care Act (ACA), frequently referred to as “Obamacare”.

It can be credibly argued that this was the issue that gave birth to the “Tea Party” movement in concert with claims of “death panels” and the “government takeover of healthcare”.