CNN source: If White House has no solution by Friday, Dems may vote for “Keep Your Plan Act”

Hotair ^ | 11/12/2013 | AllahPundit

[SeekAndFind]

Amazing stuff via Mediaite. The “Keep Your Plan Act” is Fred Upton’s bill, which Jay Carney spent a few minutes attacking at today’s press briefing because it would make canceled plans available to all consumers, not just the ones who’d been enrolled in those plans before. That would be a disaster for the insurance industry. Healthy people would flee the new, more expensive plans for the resurrected cheaper ones, leaving no one in the new risk pool except sick people with very expensive treatments. That means either heavy losses for insurers, steep premium hikes next year to make up the difference, or some sort of federal bailout (congrats, red-state Democrats!) — or maybe a little of all three. You’ll have the same problem, though, albeit to a lesser extent, even if Upton’s bill is amended so that it applies only to people who’d been enrolled in a particular plan before it was cancelled. You can’t run a two-tiered healthy/sick insurance system. If the risk pools aren’t merged, replete with higher rates for the former, you can’t pay for the latter.

I understand why the GOP would back Upton’s bill. It’s a slam dunk politically, grinding Obama’s face in the consequences of his lie. This is the Democrats’ mess; Reid and the Senate can/will kill the bill if they like. I can’t understand why House Democrats, aware of the adverse selection problem that’s lurking here — and the political humiliation for the White House — would sign on, unless they’ve already reached a point of such pure terror over the “if you like your plan” backlash that they’re willing to kneecap ObamaCare six weeks out of the gate. Did they … not understand that millions of people were going to face cancellations and higher premiums under the law’s redistributive scheme? Of course they did. Steny Hoyer, number two in the Democratic caucus admitted it on October 29th. Fast forward two weeks and here’s where Hoyer is now:

“I don’t know what I’m gonna do on the Upton bill,” the Maryland Democrat said at a Tuesday briefing with reporters when discussing legislation sponsored by Energy and Commerce Chairman Fred Upton, R-Mich.

Hoyer noted that he was “inclined not to be for the Upton bill at this time,” but he emphasized that he was “not closed to the option,” and would “reserve judgment” until he had seen the legislative text, which is reportedly undergoing some tweaks.

“I agree that people who purchased their policies prior to [the law's enactment date] ought to be able to keep their policies,” he said.

If he agrees that they should be able to keep their policies, why did he vote for ObamaCare? The whole point of the law is that healthy middle-class people shouldn’t be allowed to keep policies that have relatively low premiums. We need to gouge those suckers with higher premiums for new “comprehensive” plans so that we can pay for the preexisting conditions of the sick. It’s like voting for immigration reform and then feigning surprise in five years when the newly “secure” border hasn’t halted illegal immigration. It’s not supposed to do that. That’s something you tell the hoi polloi in order to give Congress enough cover to vote for it.

The vote on Upton’s bill is set for Friday, which, per CNN’s source on the Hill, means the White House has 48 hours or so to come up with its own proposal for letting people keep their plans — adverse selection problem or not — before Democrats head for the lifeboats. Greg Sargent claims that the Democratic leadership is now warning the rank and file that rich liberal donors won’t look kindly at them if they abandon The One on his big “accomplishment.” I’ll leave you with this, just to show that the fear isn’t limited to Dems in red states. After a million cancellations, even DiFi’s nervous:

Feinstein: "I have decided to cosponsor Senator Mary Landrieu’s (D-La.) legislation: Keeping the Affordable Care Act Promise Act."

CLICK ABOVE LINK FOR THE VIDEO

[eyedigress]

The dems can kiss ass. Keep and Defend the Constitution Act should be on their mantle.

Everybody gets to go home and get some rest.

Senator Kay Hagan, you are up for a fight. Take your socialism and shove it.

This Nation is about freedom FROM government.

[JennysCool]

That's what it is all about, destroy the insurance companies, so that it will be a single payer system.

That may have been their original plan, but these amateurs completely blew it. After this spectacular, disastrous fail, the last thing anyone (particularly Democrats running for re-election) wants is government MORE involved in health care. These people completely blew their chance, and at the unbelievably wrong time (for them I mean!). The ineptitude on display is even being noticed by the lowest of low-information voters.

[Ray76]

I think there should be no modifications or delays. I think the Democrats, as well as their voters, should suffer and suffer severely. Not out of malice, but so that they will learn.

Modifications or delays will only allow this "law" to "succeed". It must not be allowed to succeed in any degree. It must be defeated entirely. The only way that is going to happen is if the idea of socialism is destroyed. We must salt the fields so that this poison seed can never grow again. Their suffering is that salt, the fields their hearts and minds.

It is unfortunate that we who reject the Democrat's socialist swill must suffer as well. The body-politic must suffer the fever to kill the disease. The fever may run high, but it is necessary.

[LowTaxesEqualsProsperity]

Every Rat that voted for the ACA must be taken out.

And every GOP’er that tries to help the Rats “fix” this must also be taken out.

The law is doomed. Let it crash.

[Political Junkie Too]

I think the problem now is the policies are not legal, so if they vote on a “keep your policy” law, it won’t mean anything, unless they change their law.

If this law passes, is it a de facto repeal of parts of Obamacare, or are they creating two conflicting laws that can't both be enforced?

Someone who wants to start trouble can file a lawsuit arguing that one or the other law must be struck down, because they can't both the "settled law of the land."

So, if Democrats go on the record repealing parts of Obamacare, does that open the floodgates for Republicans to introduce other repeal laws, since the Democrats went first, essentially admitting it was bad law?

-PJ

[Ray76]

“This is just a feel good vote to help dems distance themselves from the very damage that they are inflicting.”

Get back on the sinking ship, Rats.

[eyedigress]

For the Chris Matthews of the world, it means getting away.

[mylife]

We’ll have to put a metaphorical gun to their head.

[Fzob]

That's what it is all about, destroy the insurance companies, so that it will be a single payer system.

I think it was really a back door deal with the insurance companies to get reform by transferring boatloads of revenue into their pockets. No matter what happens going forward the grifter twits in Congress with ensure the insurance companies will make they money.

[tacticalogic]

So all those people who’ve received cancellation notices (or “transition” notices) will receive notices that they’re back on their old plan?

And the insurance companies are just going to eat the cost of putting it all back like it was?

[Inyo-Mono]

You can’t magically reconstruct the situation before this clusterf##k launched.

No kidding! What a nightmare and FReepers saw it coming several years ago.

[sneakers]

Thanks for the thread!

[eyedigress]

I will work tooth and nail to rid myself of idiots in charge of our nation.

I want the Constitution and nothing less. If they cannot keep that charge, they are to be dismissed.

[SunkenCiv]

Thanks SeekAndFind. That assumes that a war doesn’t start by then. Gasoline was $3.069, something like that, so I topped my tank tonight on the way home.

[Yogafist]

But that is the state of the Republican party. They should be sending a new bill to stop Obamacare in its tracks every day, and make the Democrats vote to continue this train wreck. But The Republicans will probably send up and amnesty bill to detract attention and piss of the American people even more. I hate to sound like this, but this is a great opportunity to help the American people. unfortunately the GOP doesn’t have the guts to fight.

[editor-surveyor]

The best solution would be to outlaw all medical insurance, and allow treatment costs to sink back to a normal level, like they were in the ‘50s before “health” insurance came along.

[mylife]

Yup.

[eyedigress]

Health Insurance was the answer to wage and price controls in the 40’s.

[editor-surveyor]

>> “ Democrats will get to boast about their “courage” in voting for this bill.” <<

.
People will remember that they voted for the other bill first.

[rollo tomasi]

Repeal the law, coverage currently stays the same for everyone, those that lost coverage should find temporary solace until able to renegotiate with old policy or find one just like their old one, AND THAT IS IT, final offer for the Congressional dems (While explaining this "grandfathering" does not make economical sense, along with campaign commercials bombing this law).

All Boehner is doing is performing fellatio on the Donkeys. What Boehner needs to do is play serious hardball. This nation is hanging in the balance and he wants to help "softening" and polish the destruction, good grief.