The Affordable Care Act is Coming Home to Roost

[IDBillzFan]

please provide examples by showing us the twats

 

The running gag on Twitter is naming things that have more people involved than Obamacare.

 

More people followed the XFL than signed up for Obamacare.

 

Magic Johnson slept with more people than signed up for Obamacare.

 

More people signed a petition asking the WH to build a death star than...

 

You get the point.

[B-Man]

Obamacare’s Fifth Amendment Problem

by David French

 

The Fifth Amendment to the United States Constitution states, in relevant part, that “No person shall be . . . deprived of life, liberty, or property, without due process of law.” The concept of “due process” is multi-faceted, generally meaning that a person cannot be deprived of a legally-protected interest (i.e. “life, liberty,or property”) without notice and an opportunity to be heard. In other words, at the very least a citizen has a right to defend their interests.

 

But what if a citizen’s defense is that compliance with the state’s legal mandate is impossible? Interestingly, that is a not a novel legal question. In a number of contexts, the Supreme Court and lower federal courts have raised due process concerns in the face of impossibility, especially state-created impossibility.

 

{snip}...several examples listed

 

More recently, Judge Rovner concurring in Ezelle v. City of Chicago, took aim at the city of Chicago’s efforts to evade the Second Amendment:

Stung by the result of McDonald v. City of Chicago . . . the City quickly enacted an ordinance that was too clever by half. Recognizing that a complete gun ban would no longer survive Supreme Court review, the City required all gun owners to obtain training that included one hour of live-range instruction, and then banned all live ranges within City limits. This was not so much a nod to the importance of live-range training as it was a thumbing of the municipal nose at the Supreme Court. The effect of the ordinance is another complete ban on gun ownership within City limits. That residents may travel outside the jurisdiction to fulfill the training requirement is irrelevant to the validity of the ordinance inside the City. In this I agree with the majority: given the framework of District of Columbia v. Heller and McDonald, the City may not condition gun ownership for self-defense in the home on a prerequisite that the City renders impossible to fulfill within the City limits. (Internal citations and footnotes omitted.)

 

Other cases make the same basic point: The state can’t impose penalties for noncompliance with state mandates when compliance is impossible.

 

The application to Obamacare is impossible to miss. The administration is on the verge of imposing tax penalties on millions of Americans for their alleged failure to obtain insurance policies they can’t actually obtain. With the recent leak that less than 50,000 Americans have “enrolled” in the federal exchanges (a number that apparently includes thousands who haven’t actually purchased insurance), it is a sad fact that the majority of Americans who want to purchase insurance — either because they need it or want to escape the tax penalty — cannot purchase it, and there’s currently no assurance that they’ll have a satisfactory opportunity by the time the penalty applies.

 

At the ACLJ we’ve drafted a complaint that we’ll be ready to file the very instant the enrollment period ends, if the exchanges aren’t fixed with adequate time for citizens to enroll. Imposing tax penalties when the government itself — through its own incompetence – makes compliance impossible is, quite simply, unconstitutional.

[DC Tom]

106,000 signed up...and of that number, 27,000 used the federal website.

 

That's impressive. Keep in mind, these include people who have a plan in their shopping cart, but haven't bought it yet. Remind me a lot of when the WH tried to explain the number of jobs the stimulus "created and saved."

 

Top 5 exchanges:

 

1) CA 35k

2) feds 27k

3) NY 16k

4) WA 7k

5) KY! 5.6

 

At that rate, almost half of 1% of the previously uninsured will have insurance before the year is out.

 

Which will be more than made up for by all the people who liked their insurance but couldn't keep it, of course...

[boyst]

The running gag on Twitter is naming things that have more people involved than Obamacare.

 

More people followed the XFL than signed up for Obamacare.

 

Magic Johnson slept with more people than signed up for Obamacare.

 

More people signed a petition asking the WH to build a death star than...

 

You get the point.

The legend of Kiko Alonso has had more followers then Obamacare...

 

...

 

So, which fade dies first - Legend of Kiko or the Obamacare Followers?

[DC Tom]

So, which fade dies first - Legend of Kiko or the Obamacare Followers?

 

Quick, somebody ask Chuck Norris.

 

The running gag on Twitter is naming things that have more people involved than Obamacare.

 

More people followed the XFL than signed up for Obamacare.

 

Magic Johnson slept with more people than signed up for Obamacare.

 

More people signed a petition asking the WH to build a death star than...

 

You get the point.

 

Just for perspective...by the end of the year, they MIGHT have signed up enough people to sell out a Bills game.

[drinkTHEkoolaid]

 

 

Quick, somebody ask Chuck Norris.

 

 

 

Just for perspective...by the end of the year, they MIGHT have signed up enough people to sell out a Bills game.

Let's not get carried away, they are on pace to have enough registered that they could sell out the FNC by thanksgiving

[3rdnlng]

Let's not get carried away, they are on pace to have enough registered that they could sell out the FNC by thanksgiving

 

Can we get enough registered to sell it out by 1:00 pm tomorrow?

[B-Man]

Obamacure worse than Obamacare: Democrats’ well-meaning attempts to “fix” Obamacare will only make things worse.

 

 

 

 

House Democrats Have Lost Their Patience With The White House Over Obamacare.

 

 

 

 

 

THE HILL: House Dems About To “Go Crazy.”

 

 

 

 

 

PRESIDENT, TERRORIST, ANARCHIST: Obama Open to Health-Law Change. . . . . Forget it, buddy. It’s the LAW OF THE LAND!!!!

[DC Tom]

House Democrats Have Lost Their Patience With The White House Over Obamacare.

 

 

 

 

 

THE HILL: House Dems About To “Go Crazy.”

 

 

FIX IT YOURSELF - YOU WROTE THE !@#$ING LAW, YOU !@#$ING IDIOTS!

 

The worst thing about all this, at this point, is the masses of people insisting and expecting that the president basically assume dictatorial powers to rewrite the law unilaterally. Yeah, I know he does it anyway...every president since Ike has done so to ever-increasing degrees. But I never recall hearing so much calling for him to do so. Live by the Messiah, die by the Messiah, I guess.

[OCinBuffalo]

Who still thinks Ted Cruz didn't set his whole thing up, precisely because he had the inside track on what was going to happen?

 

 

He is definitely that smart. All he required is one manager to tell him 6 months ago it was going to fail, why, when and how. That's likely, never mind common, especially on a 3 year project that isn't ready, and heading for a deadline. You easily know 6 months before that you are in trouble.

 

Now Cruz is in position to demand a pound of flesh from every member of the media. Now he's in position to go on every single one of their shows, and lay into them and Obama as much as he wants. If they want to retain their credibility, they have to put him on. And, as soon as he goes on one show, everbody else has to follow suit. I saw he was on FOX already tonight. Sunday morining? Going to be a bloodbath.

 

If I was him, and I wanted to be President, with Chris Christie and Rand Paul doing as well as they had before the shutdown? You're damn right I'd take that risk. I'd have to take it. How else was he going to get his name as nationally recognized as theirs?

 

It's all speculation, but, it walks like a duck, don't it?

[Nanker]

If you think this is fun, just wait until next year at this time. It'll be open enrollment season for employer-sponsored benefits. That's when the "Employer Mandate" ends and not millions, but tens of millions of little people will be getting a letter from their HR department explaining that the company has dropped sponsoring their healthcare insurance - but they're free to hit the exchanges to hunt for a non sub-standard policy that the Dumbocrats deem worthy. Of course, most won't "qualify" for a subsidy from the Feds, so they'll have to pay bust-out-retail for coverage that includes pediatric dental and vision care. Don't have kids, you say? Too !@#$ing bad. The Dumbos know better than you and you have to pay for your fellow Americans with seventeen children with myopia and bad dentition can get the healthcare insurance that IS THEIR RIGHT!

Edited November 14, 2013 by Nanker

[IDBillzFan]

Obama is scheduled to announce an "administrative" fix to Obamacare to help people he's lied to.

 

Let's hope he does the right thing and delays the individual mandates for a year. I suspect, however, he'll come up with a waiver of sorts that will only make things worse for him moving forward..

Edited November 14, 2013 by LABillzFan

[TheMadCap]

Obama is scheduled to announce an "administrative" fix to Obamacare to help people he's lied to.

 

Let's hope he does the right thing and delays the individual mandates for a year. I suspect, however, he'll come up with a waiver of sorts that will only make things worse for him moving forward..

 

Cause that's what we need from him at this point: more speeches, more promises, more blame...

[IDBillzFan]

Cause that's what we need from him at this point: more speeches, more promises, more blame...

 

From MSNBC:

 

A senior Democratic source told NBC News that Obama would announce that those people with insurance policies that are being canceled because they do not meet Obamacare's standards will be allowed to renew them, but that insurance companies will be required to tell people re-enrolling about alternative options and the benefits they will lose.

 

There is no mention of how long he will permit this to happen. If he does this, it'll require a timeframe, but more important, he's about to make another bad step because he is about to enlist insurance companies to explain to individuals how ridiculous Obamacare is by pointing out all the things these people don't need but that Obamacare will make them buy at a higher rate.

 

Brilliant move. You don't have enough people pointing out how bad the law is...now you've added insurance companies to the list.

[keepthefaith]

If you think this is fun, just wait until next year at this time. It'll be open enrollment season for employer-sponsored benefits. That's when the "Employer Mandate" ends and not millions, but tens of millions of little people will be getting a letter from their HR department explaining that the company has dropped sponsoring their healthcare insurance - but they're free to hit the exchanges to hunt for a non sub-standard policy that the Dumbocrats deem worthy. Of course, most won't "qualify" for a subsidy from the Feds, so they'll have to pay bust-out-retail for coverage that includes pediatric dental and vision care. Don't have kids, you say? Too !@#$ing bad. The Dumbos know better than you and you have to pay for your fellow Americans with seventeen children with myopia and bad dentition can get the healthcare insurance that IS THEIR RIGHT!

 

Ur damn right. Our health care program has been difficult enough to navigate and fund in recent years. It's more challenging and expensive than ever and our next renewal will actually be a transition to a "similar" plan that meets the new fed guidelines. It'll be substantially more expensive. We've had more than a 100% increase over the past 3 years already much due to the new law. We're simply going to give a stipend to our employees and send them on their own. Most don't agree on what coverage they want going forward so they can decide for themselves. What was a nice benefit in the past has simply become to hard and too expensive to manage. Many businesses will do the same.

[DC Tom]

Obama is scheduled to announce an "administrative" fix to Obamacare to help people he's lied to.

 

Let's hope he does the right thing and delays the individual mandates for a year. I suspect, however, he'll come up with a waiver of sorts that will only make things worse for him moving forward..

 

No...it'll be a change to HHS regulations allowing policies already cancelled to be reissued on the same terms as when they were cancelled. Then when the insurance companies can't immediately reinstate everyone's policy (because in the real world you can't just flip a switch. **** takes time and effort), the administration can point to the insurers and say "See? It wasn't us! It was them all along!"

[IDBillzFan]

No...it'll be a change to HHS regulations allowing policies already cancelled to be reissued on the same terms as when they were cancelled. Then when the insurance companies can't immediately reinstate everyone's policy (because in the real world you can't just flip a switch. **** takes time and effort), the administration can point to the insurers and say "See? It wasn't us! It was them all along!"

 

While I agree you can't just flip a switch, the switch you need to flip in this case is pretty nominal. No one has lost their insurance yet. They've only been told they're losing it in the next 45 days. So there shouldn't be anything to reinstate...just a letter saying "We can keep your plan active through this time next year...here are the things you don't get with our plan...you don't need to do anything to keep your current plan.

 

There was a time I thought the WH was smart enough to consider your concept above, but I've gotten to the point where I just don't think they have a clue as to what they're doing and, to use your phrase, they're throwing the box the bullets came in at this point.

Edited November 14, 2013 by LABillzFan

[DC Tom]

While I agree you can't just flip a switch, the switch you need to flip in this case is pretty nominal. No one has lost their insurance yet. They've only been told they're losing it in the next 45 days. So there shouldn't be anything to reinstate...just a letter saying "We can keep your plan active through this time next year...here are the things you don't get with our plan...you don't need to do anything to keep your current plan.

 

There was a time I thought the WH was smart enough to consider your concept above, but I've gotten to the point where I just don't think they have a clue as to what they're doing and, to use your phrase, they're throwing the box the bullets came in at this point.

 

It should be that easy, but it probably isn't, if only because there's probably a slew of back-end accounting and administrative work that has to be done to reinstate the policies for next year.

 

And because the insurers probably don't know what to charge for the cancelled plans. It's not like they ran the numbers to see how much those plans would cost in 2014...since, y'know, they'd planned not even offering illegal insurance plans. Thus, why the administration will require the terms not be changed - make the insurers offer the plans without raising the premiums. The insurers can either eat the loss, or they'll balk, and the administration gets to point fingers.

 

And I don't think they have a clue what they're doing beyond "Make sure we didn't do that, somebody else made it happen." I work with a person like this - every time she !@#$s up, they find a way to make sure it's not their fault ("It's not my fault I misread that document. The font was wrong." Seriously.) Just because I know what the administration's going to do, doesn't mean I think they have any idea.

[keepthefaith]

So Obama wants a 1 year extension, just enough to get it past the mid-term election. How convenient. Let's not find a better solution. Let's simply move the date.

[DC Tom]

So Obama wants a 1 year extension, just enough to get it past the mid-term election. How convenient. Let's not find a better solution. Let's simply move the date.

 

Because in almost six years, he's never stopped campaigning once. Makes perfect sense.

[Tiberius]

The legend of Kiko Alonso has had more followers then Obamacare...

 

...

 

So, which fade dies first - Legend of Kiko or the Obamacare Followers?

 

When Republicans try and take away those that get health insurance even though they have pre-existing conditions you will see that there are lots of Obamacare followers. It's off to slow start but it ain't goin anywhere

Edited November 14, 2013 by gatorman

[DC Tom]

When Republicans try and take away those that get health insurance even though they have pre-existing conditions you will see that there are lots of Obamacare followers.

 

About every tenth post you write something that makes me think of Benicio del Toro in The Usual Suspects.

 

What did you just say?

[B-Man]

QUESTIONS for Senate Dems who voted for ObamaCare.

 

Worth noting that it was only Dems in the Senate who voted for ObamaCare, since, you know, it passed without a single Republican vote.

 

 

 

 

The Dire Consequences of Centralized Health Care

 

Obamacare is taking us toward the disaster that has become the UK’s NHS. No, it isn’t a directly socialized system. Yet. But it is a centrally controlled system with the ultimate goal of failing into single payer.

And that will be a disaster that makes the current train wreck the “good old days.” The current mess in the Wales version of the NHS illustrates the point. From the BBC report:

The number of patients waiting more than nine months for hospital treatment in Wales has more than doubled in six months, figures show. The number of patients waiting jumped from 5,414 to 11,672, in the six months since March this year.

 

 

.

[DC Tom]

The number of patients waiting more than nine months for hospital treatment in Wales has more than doubled in six months, figures show. The number of patients waiting jumped from 5,414 to 11,672, in the six months since March this year.

 

 

That's only because there's no effective treatment for being Welsh.

[keepthefaith]

When Republicans try and take away those that get health insurance even though they have pre-existing conditions you will see that there are lots of Obamacare followers. It's off to slow start but it ain't goin anywhere

Nobody's trying to reverse pre-existing condition coverage. The law that was passed is simply a crappy solution to solve the uninsured. If there is an argument that supports Obamacare as a well crafted solution, let's hear it.

[DC Tom]

Nobody's trying to reverse pre-existing condition coverage. The law that was passed is simply a crappy solution to solve the uninsured. If there is an argument that supports Obamacare as a well crafted solution, let's hear it.

 

It's "reform," and the system needed reform, therefore it's good.

 

This logic brought to you by the same people that thought absolutely nobody could be worse than Bush.

[B-Man]

About every tenth post you write something that makes me think of Benicio del Toro in The Usual Suspects.

 

What did you just say?

 

 

When it comes to Obamacare Tom, I prefer another quote (slightly altered) from The Usual Suspects;

 

 

 

Verbal: "Oh, gee, thanks, Dave Barack. Bang-up job so far...................... Extortion, coercion.

 

You'll pardon me if I ask you to kiss my pucker. The same f***ers that rounded us up and sank us into this mess are gonna bail me us out? F--- you."

 

 

.

[IDBillzFan]

Interesting that current headlines are suggesting the president is allowing a year-long delay for the individual mandate, but what he *seemed* to be saying is that they will allow people who had their plan cancelled (as of this date) to keep their plan, which is a totally different issue.

 

ABC News reads : Obama announces insured can keep health plans.

 

The other question begs: Can he actually do this administrative to an existing law?

[DC Tom]

Interesting that current headlines are suggesting the president is allowing a year-long delay for the individual mandate, but what he *seemed* to be saying is that they will allow people who had their plan cancelled (as of this date) to keep their plan, which is a totally different issue.

 

ABC News reads : Obama announces insured can keep health plans.

 

The other question begs: Can he actually do this administrative to an existing law?

 

No one's stopped him yet.

 

More seriously: my understanding is that the cancellations were prompted by HSS regs written in a very narrow interpretation of the law, and not the law itself...so yes, the executive can reverse that decision. With regards to delaying the mandate...probably not, but he already delayed the employer mandate unconstitutionally, so there's precedent.

 

The truly sickening thing is how many people think this is acceptable. Let's just go ahead and pass an Enabling Act - we can even call it the "Law to Remedy the Distress of People and The Homeland."

[B-Man]

Sorry Barack..........everyone's feeling empowered these days..........

 

 

State insurance commissioner rejects Obama’s proposal to extend canceled policies

 

State Insurance Commissioner Mike Kreidler has rejected President Obama’s proposal to allow insurance companies to extend health insurance policies for people who have received notices that their policies will be cancelled at the end of the year.

 

Within two hours of President Obama’s news conference announcing the proposed administrative fix for Americans upset by their policy cancellations, Kreidler issued a statement rejecting the proposal.

 

“I understand that many people are upset by the notices they have recently received from their health plans and they may not need the new benefits [in the Affordable Care Act] today,” he said. “But I have serious concerns about how President Obama’s proposal would be implemented and more significantly, its potential impact on the overall stability of our health insurance market.”

 

“I do not believe his proposal is a good deal for the state of Washington,” Kreidler’s statement continued. “We will not be allowing insurance companies to extend their policies.”

 

 

 

http://blogs.seattletimes.com/healthcarecheckup/2013/11/14/state-insurance-commissioner-rejects-obamas-proposal-to-extend-canceled-policies/

 

 

 

.

[IDBillzFan]

Sorry Barack..........everyone's feeling empowered these days..........

 

Damn teabagger governor and his teabagger state insurance commissioner...obstructing the black president's signature..uh...ummm..

 

Wait. What? They're Democrats?

 

Oh.

 

Nevermind.

[Koko78]

Damn teabagger governor and his teabagger state insurance commissioner...obstructing the black president's signature..uh...ummm..

 

Wait. What? They're Democrats?

 

Oh.

 

Nevermind.

 

Rumsfeld, Cheney, Bush, Cruz and Boehner got to them. This is all the GOP's fault. Damned racist teabaggers.

[B-Man]

Thank you Major............................

 

CBS's Major Garrett Grills President on ObamaCare Debacle: Where's the Accountability?

 

CBS journalist Major Garrett grilled Barack Obama at a White House news conference, Thursday. On the subject of ObamaCare's disastrous rollout, the reporter repeatedly zeroed in on what the President knew and when: "You said after the law was implemented or signed, if like your plan, you can keep it. Americans believed you, sir, when you said that to them over and over."[see video below. MP3 audio here.]

 

Garrett pushed, "Do you not believe, sir, the American people deserve a deeper, more transparent accountability from you as to why you said it over and over and when your own statistics, published in the Federal Register, alerted your policy staff, and I presume you, to the fact that millions of Americans would, in fact, probably fall into the very gap you are trying to administratively fix now?" The journalist wasn't done. He offered up two more hard-hitting queries.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N6oFQfuFp4k

 

 

 

Garrett added, "You were informed or – several people in this building were informed two weeks before the launch of the website that it was failing the most basic tests internally. Yet, a decision was made to launch the website on October 1st. Did you, sir, make that test and if so, did you regret it?"

 

Obama professed ignorance:

 

OBAMA: On the website, I was not informed directly that the website would not be working the way it was supposed to. Had I been informed I wouldn't be going out saying "boy, this is going to be great." You know, I'm accused of a lot of things but I don't think that I'm stupid enough to go around saying this is going to be like shopping on Amazon or Travelocity a week before the website open it if I thought it wasn't going to work.

 

Staying focused, Garrett demanded, "Did you decide, sir, that the simple declaration was something the American people could handle but this nuance was something they couldn't handle and didn't trust the American people with the fuller truth?"

 

Read more: http://newsbusters.o...t#ixzz2kffiXP9n

Edited November 15, 2013 by B-Man

[OCinBuffalo]

Before this is over, they are going to have to haul a few Democrats away to the looney bin. They'll be muttering:

 

"Cheney" "Bush" "Tea Bagger" "Palin" "WMD"

 

as they get hauled away.

 

However, the paramedic is a wiseass libertarian, so, ever mile or so, he look back and yell "OBAMACARE!", and touch off another outburst of crazy.

[DC Tom]

Sorry Barack..........everyone's feeling empowered these days..........

 

 

 

 

http://blogs.seattletimes.com/healthcarecheckup/2013/11/14/state-insurance-commissioner-rejects-obamas-proposal-to-extend-canceled-policies/

 

 

 

.

 

Oh, right. Everyone forgot that the STATES regulate insurance.

 

Presidential edict against federal law vs. states' rights upholding federal law. It'd be interesting (and likely depressing) if this ever made the inside of a courtroom.

[birdog1960]

howard speaks the truth: http://www.politico.com/story/2013/11/liberals-to-president-obama-keep-it-together-99895.html?hp=t3_3. obama needs to listen. now.

[boyst]

Question from work. Our _____ _____ HR woman mispoke to my knowledge. Could it really be that legal residents, work right visa residents and other non-US citizens do not need to have this insurance?

 

howard speaks the truth: http://www.politico....95.html?hp=t3_3. obama needs to listen. now.

Howard Stern had a much better take then Howard Dean. No joke, his half wit brain and liberal Dem love was halfway able to explain it. Howard Dean is just a little B word.

[birdog1960]

Howard Stern had a much better take then Howard Dean. No joke, his half wit brain and liberal Dem love was halfway able to explain it. Howard Dean is just a little B word.

howard stern vs howard dean on healthcare policy qualifications? http://en.wikipedia....iki/Howard_Dean qualifications on any type? howard stern, the 20th century version of "midsummer's night dream' rude mechanicals all wrapped up in one fool. yet somehow, more people listen to him. go figure. Edited November 15, 2013 by birdog1960

[boyst]

howard stern vs howard dean on healthcare policy qualifications? http://en.wikipedia....iki/Howard_Dean qualifications on any type? howard stern, the 20th century version of "midsummer night dreams' rude mechanicals all wrapped up in one fool. yet somehow, more people listen to him. go figure.

howard stern is entertaining. howard dean is entertaining because he is just so goofy.

 

stern has the ability to make a statement and have it mean something with weight that a listener can carry. dean issues statements that carry weight that mean nothing - not just him, but 99.9% of politicians. only tea-baggers mean what they say...

 

 

 

 

(kidding on tbaggers)

[DC Tom]

howard speaks the truth: http://www.politico....95.html?hp=t3_3. obama needs to listen. now.

 

 

YEEEEAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRGGGGGGGGGGGGGGHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!