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Obamacare: Paying More For Less

‘It’s clear to just about everyone that Obamacare is failing. Costs are soaring. Choices are diminishing. Insurance markets are teetering.'

March 7, 2017

WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) made the following remarks on Senate floor today regarding the progress Congress has made on the repeal and replacement of Obamacare:

“Last night, the committees of jurisdiction in the House released a proposal to repeal Obamacare and begin the process of replacing of it with common-sense reforms to preserve access and lower cost. The plan builds upon the 2015 repeal bill, which was vetoed by President Obama. I’m happy to hear the committees will begin consideration this week. I encourage every member to review it because I hope to call it up when we receive it from the House.

“It’s clear to just about everyone that Obamacare is failing. Costs are soaring. Choices are diminishing. Insurance markets are teetering. It would be easy to just sit back and watch this partisan law collapse under its own weight. Pass the buck to the next guy. That seems to be the Democrats’ strategy. But Republicans think the middle class deserves better.

“In election after election, Americans have called for relief. In election after election, Americans have called for an end to this partisan law. We promised we’d do both of those things. We are.

“The legislation the House introduced last night represents the next step along that path. It’s the result of a long conversation with many voices, and it’s supported by the one person who can actually sign a bill into law — the President of the United States. I want to recognize everyone for their contributions and hard work. Given last night’s announcement, I especially want to commend our colleagues in the House.

“The policy conversation that led to what we saw last night continues now. The policy process moves forward today. We’ve come a long way. We’ve got a lot further to go. But we’re making significant progress. Working arm-in-arm with the House and the new administration, we’re going to keep our promise to the American people.

“Because Obamacare is a direct attack on the middle class. We all know it. We all get the letters and the phone calls. We hear the heart-break and the frustration nearly every day. Consider this letter from one of my constituents in Goshen, who wrote about the Obamacare plans available to his family:

“‘I am extremely displeased with the limited choices available. While 16 plans are listed for me at the Healthcare.gov website, they all are inferior to my current 2016 plan,’ he wrote. ‘Neither our primary care physician nor my rheumatologist is in network of any offered 2017 plan.’

“‘The cost,’ he continued, ‘is another problem. The 2017 plan that I will probably choose will have a 20% higher premium than my 2016 plan with a lower level of benefits…’

“Paying more for less. That’s Obamacare for you right there. Look, in so many different ways, we’ve seen the evidence for years now that Obamacare simply isn’t working. This isn’t a law that can be fixed. This isn’t a law that can be saved. It has to be repealed and replaced. We promised the American people we would. We’re keeping our promise.”

Senate Working to Protect Americans from Harmful Obama Regulations

This regulation has little to do with improving current policy. Instead, it really just represents another power grab rushed through by the Obama Administration on its way out the door.

March 7, 2017

WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) made the following remarks on Senate floor today regarding another heavy-handed Obama regulation:

“For the past eight years, Americans felt left behind by an economy that failed to live up to its potential, a job market that left too many behind, and a future that didn’t seem as bright as it once had. For too long, the previous administration pursued an agenda that put Washington’s interests above the peoples’ interests and regulations that too often followed ideology rather than facts.

“In fact, as we recently saw cited in a national paper, one study ‘estimates that the costs of complying with federal rules and regulations totaled nearly $1.9 trillion in 2015, equal to about half the federal budget.’ And yet another study ‘estimates that regulation has shaved 0.8 percent off the U.S. annual growth rate…’ — a growth rate that was already too slow to begin with.

“So you can see the effect that heavy-handed regulations can have on our nation’s economy. It’s no question that some regulations are necessary, and even beneficial to our country, but Washington should assess the real impact regulations will have before implementing them. Undoing the damage of the past several years is going to take some time, but fortunately there are meaningful steps we’ve already begun taking to bring relief.

“Just last night we took another step, by blocking a sweeping labor regulation that would have threatened American businesses, workers, and taxpayers at large. Today we’ll keep working to dial back even more harmful regulations, like the one before us now — the so-called ‘BLM Planning 2.0 Rule.’

“Don’t let the name fool you: This regulation has little to do with improving current policy. Instead, it really just represents another power grab rushed through by the Obama Administration on its way out the door. Like several other regulations we’re working to address, this one adopts a top-down, one-size-fits-all approach. It shifts power away from state and local governments toward Washington bureaucrats. And it targets Western states specifically, jeopardizing their ability to manage the land and resources that their local economies count on.

“As Sen. Murkowski, Chair of the Energy Committee, has pointed out, this regulation could negatively impact a range of activities like grazing, timber, energy and mineral development and other important uses of public lands that states like hers rely on. And, perhaps even more troubling, it would also limit input from local stakeholders who are most familiar with these issues. That’s why Sen. Murkowski has been fighting the BLM 2.0 regulation from the start and has introduced legislation under the Congressional Review Act to overturn it.

“Later today we’ll have the opportunity to vote on a similar resolution, which already passed the House. It’s another important step in our efforts to return power to the states and knock down barriers that keep our economy from growing.”

Providing Relief from Costly Obama Regulations

‘Regulations aren’t issued in a vacuum; they have real economic consequences that can harm the middle class. They can kill jobs, raise prices, depress wages, and lower opportunities.'

March 6, 2017

WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) made the following remarks on Senate floor today regarding Senate work to roll back a costly Obama Administration ‘blacklisting’ regulation through the Congressional Review Act:

“Regulations aren’t issued in a vacuum; they have real economic consequences that can harm the middle class. They can kill jobs, raise prices, depress wages, and lower opportunities. And yet, the Obama Administration went on a regulatory rampage at a time when we should’ve been looking to do just the opposite.

“On its way out the door, the previous administration continued to push through more of these job-killing, partisan regulations against the advice of Congress, state and local officials, and policy experts.

“Fortunately, we now have the opportunity to provide relief from some of these costly, duplicative rules using the tools provided by the Congressional Review Act, or CRA. We only have a short window of opportunity to use these CRA tools, however, which is why we’ve been working quickly to provide relief.

“The Senate has already advanced several proposals that repeal harmful regulations, and, together with the new administration, we’ve embarked on what one national paper recently called the ‘most ambitious regulatory rollback since Reagan.’

“Three CRA resolutions have already become law, and we look forward to passing even more this week. In fact, we’ll have an opportunity to send the president another resolution as soon as this evening. The proposal before us will block another duplicative, unnecessary 11th Hour regulation that hurts American businesses.

“This one is called the ‘Blacklisting Rule.’ Apparently the last administration thought it would be a good idea to prevent American businesses from earning government contracts based on allegations, not facts. Unsurprisingly, Federal Courts have blocked the rule because of its questionable legality. Now we have the opportunity to provide permanent relief.

“Of course we all agree that companies should be held accountable and that workers’ rights should be protected. Current law already provides the tools to do so. But the Blacklisting Rule isn’t really about helping employers or workers, it’s about empowering the powerful — like union bosses and entrenched bureaucrats — and it would actually make a system designed to protect workers less efficient. More important for the American people, it would cost taxpayers hundreds of millions, generate millions of hours in paperwork, and of course threaten jobs.

“So of course it’s time to move past this regulation. I want to thank my colleague Senator Johnson, Chairman of the Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee, for working with the House to advance this resolution and protect the American people.

“I look forward to its final passage tonight. After we take that vote, the Senate will continue working to advance even more regulatory relief measures to help get our country back on track.”

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