WASHINGTON, D.C. — President Obama has recently made speeches about his jobs and deficit plans. However, neither proposal addresses the major problem in the stagnant economy.
What the President is not talking about is the Obama Healthcare Reform law, which presents the greatest threat to job creation and our future fiscal sustainability.
This estimated $2.6 trillion signature legislation, with the far-reaching regulations and government mandates it includes, is causing havoc and uncertainty for states, businesses and American families.
Recently, a federal judge in Pennsylvania joined the growing number of federal judges and appellate courts that have struck down all or part of the health reform law.
So far, 28 states have sued the federal government, challenging the health care law’s constitutionality. The most recent ruling in this protracted legal battle marks another blow to an increasingly uncertain future for the health reform law.
Regardless of the legal uncertainty surrounding the legislation, the Obama Administration continues to spend billions of dollars implementing a law that may ultimately be struck down by the U.S. Supreme Court.
Whether you support or oppose the new law, it is fiscally irresponsible for the Administration to forge ahead implementing this law that runs the real risk of being ruled unconstitutional.
Earlier this year I introduced the Save Our States (SOS) Act to halt any further implementation of the Obama healthcare law until a final judicial resolution has been reached by the U.S. Supreme Court.
Under the moratorium, no state government or small business would be forced by the federal government to spend any additional time or resources implementing or complying with this law until there is judicial resolution.
I have heard over and over again from small businesses in Texas that this law’s mandates and new regulations are the biggest disincentive to growing their businesses and hiring more employees.
Even as the law is mired in legal uncertainty, there is no question that its unpopularity and negative consequences have reached a pitch only a year and a half since its passage.
Businesses are experiencing unprecedented premium increases in order to continue providing insurance for their employees. And a widely circulated study by the McKinsey and Company consulting firm estimates that as many as one in three businesses will drop their employee health insurance and opt to pay the law’s fine, forcing their employees to find “government-approved” insurance on their own.
It should be no surprise that the more people know about this law, the less they like it. A recent poll conducted by the Associated Press and the National Constitution Center found that 82 percent of Americans believe that the federal government should not have the power to require Americans to buy healthcare insurance.
While the Administration and its allies clearly do not have legal certainty or public opinion on their side in this dispute, they remain undeterred.
So far, more than 6,000 pages of new regulations have been issued by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services to implement health reform. These efforts are costing taxpayers on multiple fronts, in the form of billions and eventually trillions in deficit spending, higher taxes, and more regulations.
The fact is, healthcare reform is scaring our small businesses and has effectively put a freeze on hiring.
We cannot wait any longer. It is critical for the Administration to halt the proliferation of regulations based on this flawed law. Since it is doubtful that they will do so, I will push Congress to pass my legislation to stop them before the damage and cost is beyond repair.
Kay Bailey Hutchison (Hutchison.senate.gov), a four-term Republican, is the senior U.S. Senator from Texas. Readers may write her at 284 Senate Russell Office Building, Washington, DC 20510.
