With the unemployment rate at its highest level in a quarter-century and the federal deficit at its highest level
ever, Republicans are doing all they can to ensure Democrats don’t make our economy any worse with their proposed trillion dollar government takeover of our health care system. The question is: Will Democrats stand up for workers, families, and the economy?
“There’s no denying that the Democrats’ health care plan will cost this country far too much. It will impose higher taxes on families and small businesses and destroy the jobs our workers and the U.S. economy need,” said Rep. John Kline (R-MN), the U.S. House Education and Labor Committee’s top Republican. “It will also cost future generations by creating a massive new government bureaucracy financed with budget gimmicks and anti-growth policies that will burden them with significant debt. Republicans want to prevent these crippling costs to our country, and we’re asking Democrats to join us.”
Protecting Jobs
With the national unemployment rate now standing at 9.5 percent, Republicans believe Americans need strong protections to prevent further job losses caused by the Democrats’ health care legislation.
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Rep. Pete Hoekstra (R-MI), who represents the state with the highest jobless rate in the nation, proposed that the “pay or play” framework not apply if the national unemployment rate exceeds eight percent. The “pay or play” provisions in the legislation require businesses – including small businesses – to offer federally dictated benefits or pay costly financial penalties. A national mandate on small business to provide health care would eliminate 1.6 million jobs over a five-year period according to a study by the National Federation of Independent Business Research Foundation, with two out of three of those jobs shed from small businesses. Democrats rejected the amendment.
Preventing Costly & Unnecessary Litigation
A major reason behind the high cost of health care in this country is medical liability and the costly lawsuits that enrich trial lawyers while making it harder for families to secure care. It’s a problem that could be made worse under the Democrats’ health care proposal, and that’s why Republicans are offering commonsense protections against unnecessary litigation.
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Senior Republican Member Kline proposed an amendment to shield employers who offer health care coverage to their workers from being caught up in a complex web of state-based legal liability systems. Under current law, federally governed employer-provided health plans are already covered by a liability umbrella that contains specific remedies and worker protections. Without the Kline amendment, these employers could face layers of new liabilities that would differ from state to state. A vote on the amendment has been postponed.
Protecting Families & Future Generations
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Rep. Cathy McMorris Rodgers (R-WA) offered an amendment to protect families who earn less than $250,000 per year from tax hikes under the Democrats’ health care plan. During his presidential campaign, then-candidate Barack Obama repeatedly offered assurances that taxes would not be raised on these families, making the vote on this amendment a clear test of Democrats’ true intentions for taxing American families and small businesses. Rather than voting yes or no on the amendment, Democrats shut down the debate on procedural grounds.
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Rep. Tom McClintock (R-CA) proposed an amendment that would ensure the entire portion of the legislation that calls for a government-controlled health care system would not take effect unless the legislation is and remains deficit neutral. With the federal deficit projected to reach $1.8 trillion this year, the amendment would ensure Democrats keep their promises to pay for the legislation and protect future generations from the sea of red ink that will accompany a government takeover of our health care system. A vote on the amendment has been postponed.
Votes on the GOP amendments are expected later in the markup.
The Education and Labor Committee is one of three panels simultaneously voting on the Democrats’ radical health care overhaul this week as their party’s leaders try to meet an arbitrary deadline that would rush the legislation through the full U.S. House of Representatives before the end of this month.
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