Has Obamacare Been Sabotaged?
"The Lesson of Obamacare: Sabotage Works", argues Mother Jones' Kevin Drum: "...nder normal circumstances, even an opposition party would end up cutting a deal eventually to shore up the missing funding. Not this time, though. As one White House official told the [Washington] Post, 'You're basically trying to build a complicated building in a war zone, because the Republicans are lobbing bombs at us.' ... No federal program that I can remember faced quite the implacable hostility during its implementation that Obamacare has faced."
Now Dodd-Frank implementation being sabotaged by Republicans, finds ThinkProgress: "Congress is underfunding and understaffing the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC), preventing the agency from fulfilling the expanded role given to it by a very different set of lawmakers under the 2010 Wall Street reform law. The lack of resources is forcing the commission to drop investigations it would likely otherwise pursue, according to top CFTC officials who are close to the end of their terms in office."
The Nation's Zoe Carpenter analyzes the "winners and losers": "There are three things to unpack here: how many people will lose their current policies, how much they’ll pay for their new plans and whether they need insurance that meets the new minimum requirements at all ... only 3 percent of the population may pay higher premiums for new insurance policies ... Many of the people receiving cancellation letters will likely chose inexpensive insurance because of financial constraints, and so may be eligible for subsidies ... but the fact that 3 percent of Americans may pay more than they do now—so that another 14 percent can be insured—shouldn’t be news to anyone who’s followed healthcare reform. It may not be fair, but neither is charging women higher premiums or locking sick people out of the insurance marketplace."
Millions eligible for free plans, reports NYT: "Three independent estimates by Wall Street analysts and a consulting firm say up to seven million people could qualify for the plans, but federal officials and insurers are reluctant to push them too hard because they are concerned about encouraging people to sign up for something that might ultimately not fit their needs ... They require people to pay the most in out-of-pocket costs, for doctor visits and other benefits like hospital stays ... [Insurers have] been careful not to publicize its free coverage for fear of alienating customers who will need to pay more ..."
Dean Baker slams W. Post story on allegations of rate shock: "The article begins by telling readers about a 58-year-old lawyer in Washington, DC who will see her premiums increase from $297 a month to $463 a month with a policy purchased through the exchange. The piece tells that with the policy purchased through the exchange her maximum out of pocket expenses would double. It then informs readers: 'That means she could end up paying at least $5,000 more a year than she does now.' This conclusion does not follow. If this lawyer actually did hit the new maximum under the policy available through the exchanges, then she would almost certainly have been dropped from her other plan, since the insurer would otherwise be losing money on her."
Obama heads to Dallas to praise health care "navigators." The Hill: "President Obama will travel on Dallas on Wednesday to thank neighborhood canvassers and navigators helping residents to enroll in ObamaCare ... White House officials and Cabinet members are being dispatched to the 10 cities with the highest rates of uninsured residents that participate in the federal marketplace. Housing and Urban Development Secretary Shaun Donovan will travel to Tampa on Friday and Labor Secretary Tom Perez will visit Orlando next week..."
Progressives Expect Gains On Election Day
NJ voters expected to raise minimum wage tomorrow. Philadelphia Inquirer: "...dueling campaigns are trying to reach voters about a ballot question that would amend the state constitution to increase the minimum wage by $1, to $8.25 an hour, and tie future increases to the Consumer Price Index ... A Monmouth University/Asbury Park Press poll conducted last month found 65 percent of registered voters who responded supported the proposed increase ..."
Tea Party fave Ken Cuccinelli headed toward defeat in VA governor's race. Politico: "Listen to the talking points from the Cuccinelli campaign and its surrogates, and watch their decisions over time and money, and all the signatures of a classic political death march are on bright display ... While Cuccinelli tries to keep his campaign on life support, many people who were never enthusiastic about nominating a zealous social conservative in an increasingly moderate state have been working for weeks on their unflattering obituaries."
Bill de Blasio heads toward landslide win in NYC. WNBC-NY: "With just days before Tuesday's election, 65 percent of likely voters say they will vote for de Blasio, compared to 24 percent for Lhota, a new NBC 4 New York/Wall Street Journal/Marist poll shows."
Breakfast Sides
Top House Republican urges immigration reform. The Hill: "Rep. Fred Upton (R-Mich.) said he will work to get immigration reform passed in the House, saying 'it has to be fixed.' 'To me, doing nothing is not acceptable,' Upton told a Rotary Club meeting in Richland, Mich. ... 'I do believe that we'll have at least half our caucus for it,' he said ... Upton said only that he supports 'somewhat of a pathway to legal status.'"
Wind tax credit in trouble. Politico: "As Congress works on a tax reform package that could take months to complete, it’s looking increasingly likely that the production tax credit, a key wind industry lifeline, will expire shortly after the end of the year — at least temporarily ... One Senate aide said tax writers in Congress aren’t even talking about a year-end extenders package, which traditionally allows for the continuation of credits like the PTC. Without an extenders package, PTC supporters must pin their hopes on reviving the tax credit as part of broader tax reform, which isn’t expected to move until next year, if at all."
