Posted on 11/17/2010 7:53:40 PM PST by cheneyschernobyl
A group of House Democrats has released a letter to Republican congressional leaders calling on them to announce which of their members will be forgoing their congressional benefit health insurance (which is subsidized by the government) in light of their party's opposition to health care reform overhaul legislation.
"If your conference wants to deny millions of Americans affordable health care, your members should walk that walk," four Democrats write in the letter, which is addressed to Senate Republican leader Mitch McConnell and House Republican leader John Boehner. "You cannot enroll in the very kind of coverage that you want for yourselves, and then turn around and deny it to Americans who don't happen to be Members of Congress."
According to the letter, the federal government pays more than $10,000 of the premiums of each member of Congress who has a family policy under the most selected plan.
The signatories on the letter are four liberal lawmakers: Joseph Crowley of New York, Linda T. Sanchez of California, Donna Edwards of Maryland and Tim Ryan of Ohio. They sent a separate letter to other Democratic colleagues asking them to sign onto the effort.
The Democrats say they were spurred to press Republicans to announce their position by news that Andy Harris, a conservative incoming Republican House freshman, had complained that he would not receive his government-subsidized health care coverage until Feb. 1, a month after he is sworn into office.
Harris campaigned against the health care bill, which is projected to provide coverage to more than 30 million previously uninsured Americans, and his party is vowing to "repeal and replace" it.
In their letter, the Democrats write they were "surprised" to see Harris complain that "there is a delay before benefits take effect. Ironically, this is the same predicament millions of Americans currently find themselves in."
"We also find it interesting that members of the Republican conference would have no problem taking away health coverage from hard-working Americans, but expect expanded coverage for themselves and their families," they add, writing that the health care reform bill gives Americans the option of selecting a plan in a manner similar to members of Congress.
GOP, call the bluff!
If Obamacare is identical to the health care plan that Congress has, then I would agree. But, it’s not. So let’s see the Dems live on Obamacare before they start throwing stones at Republicans.
The Senate and House health plans have been around for decades....so this argument is comical.
IF the GOP can’t knock this one out of the park, they’re asleep...
To Medicare!
Welcome to FR cheneyschernobyl. Love your name. It smells like ZOT.
So you signed up today to post this? How charming.
What do YOU think about your post?
Just ask for the same health care insurance the typical federal civil servant has. Congresscritters are, though I’m sure they would like to forget it, no more than federal civil service.
What a bunch of disingenuous no nothing punks. To make equivalency between their privately administered health plans and the disaster of ObamaCare is simply Orwellian.
It is actually employee provided insurance, Dumb Dems.
You should have searched first, this is already posted.
Lets here it.
Dumbass publicity stunt.
I would remind these idiots that one of their own RATS, defeated Steve Kagan, has made a big deal of not accepting govt health insurance on grounds that he should not have it until everyone does. What he doesnt tell you is that he can get care anytime he needs it from the Capitol Hill physicians office, so he really isnt going without.
The GOP needs to make the case that it’s one of the benefits of the job. If they did nothing and just had health insurance handed to them for “free,” they’d be Democrats.
I guess they're aiming this at the most stupid segment of the population. Only problem is, that demographic is already voting for them.
Nice try but, it won’t work. These health care plans they are talking about have been around for years/decades and don’t look anything like obamacare. The dems need to quit playing games.
Democrat congressmen should do the exact same thing, if Obamacare is so great.
Defund existing congressional healthcare.
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