In the House Committee on Energy and Commerce, we are asking questions and demanding answers to explain how hundreds of millions of taxpayer dollars were spent on a product that does not work. The failed Healthcare.gov website is a national embarrassment. and it is important that we find out just what happened and who is responsible.
Last week, in the Energy and Commerce Committee, we heard testimony from government contractors who developed the Healthcare.gov website. This week, HHS Secretary Kathleen Sebelius answered questions about the disastrous Obamacare exchange rollout.
In this newsletter, you will find links to video of my questioning of the government contractors and Secretary Sebelius, along with information about the work I have been doing to get to the bottom of the Obamacare debacle and provide Americans with relief from its effects — including my introduction of the Fairness in Failed Federal Exchanges Act, H.R. 3338.
Also this week, I introduced H.R. 3408 – the Injured and Amputee Veterans Bill of Rights. I am so thankful for the service our veterans have provided to our country and the contributions they continue to make to our communities in the Second District and across the country. It is important that they receive the care they have earned. Below you will find information about my bill which educates veterans of their rights and expectations for quality care and requires the VA to resolve any and all disputes filed against a VA clinic or healthcare provider.
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Thank you for your interest in our community and our government. For more information about my work in Washington visit ellmers.house.gov.
Looking for Answers
On Wednesday, I questioned HSS Secretary Kathleen Sebelius about the failed Obamacare exchange rollout and why constituents in my district are being punished with higher premiums and broken promises that they could keep their insurance.
Click here or on the image above to watch my questioning of Secretary Sebelius at this week’s hearing of the Energy and Commerce Committee.
Last week, I spoke on the House floor about the delays, errors, and fundamental flaws in Obamacare website design. Click on the image above for video of that speech.
We heard testimony last week from government contractors regarding the botched website in a full committee hearing — “PPACA Implementation Failures: Didn’t Know or Didn’t Disclose?” Click here or on the image below for video from that hearing.
Problems Beyond a Broken Website
It’s bad enough that American taxpayers spent hundreds of millions of dollars on a website that doesn’t work, but the problems with Obamacare go far beyond the troubles with Healthcare.gov. I appeared on CNN last week to discuss the problems with Healthcare.gov. Click here to watch the video.
I’ve heard first hand from many of my constituents about cancelled policies and increased health insurance premiums due to Obamacare. Americans across the country are seeing the same thing. The promise that you can keep your current insurance was made over and over again by the president, but for millions of Americans, that promise has been broken. This week, NBC news reported that the Obama administration knew years ago that millions would not be able to keep their health insurance. CBS News reported today that “more than two million Americans have been told they cannot renew their current insurance policies — more than triple the number of people said to be buying insurance under the new Affordable Care Act.”
We’ve also learned that the “Affordable” Care Act is anything but affordable. North Carolinians have seen some of the highest premium rate increases and according to an analysis released last week, “Many younger women who purchase coverage individually will see triple-digit increases in their healthcare premiums under ObamaCare.”
Background on the Fairness in Failed Federal Exchange Act (H.R. 3338)
Last week, President Obama announced a six-week delay for the individual mandate within the Obamacare exchanges, extending the deadline for enrollment without a penalty to March 31, 2014. This is a short term delay for a long term problem. Americans shopping for health coverage are facing major problems on the exchange website, leaving many to give up. One report showed that 47 states have faced frequent error messages, noting these problems may be caused by inadequate server capacity, poor software coding, and system architecture failure. Moreover, insurance companies have reported that the federal exchange is “generating flawed data,” including “duplicate enrollments, spouses reported as children, missing data fields, and suspect eligibility determinations.”
Yet despite these major malfunctions, and structural defects, the administration still plans to levy fines on individuals that are unable to obtain coverage. This is unacceptable, especially since the Obama administration announced this summer that it will delay the employer mandate for big business.
That’s why I introduced the Fairness in Failed Federal Exchanges Act, H.R. 3338. This bill will exempt people from the individual mandate penalty if they have gone without healthcare coverage for one month in 2014, or in a subsequent year, if an individual executes an attestation that he or she has been unable to enroll in the exchange.
Click here to read my full statement on this legislation.
H.R. 3408 – the Injured and Amputee Veterans Bill of Rights
The following is the statement I released this week regarding introduction of H.R. 3408:
“For far too long, our veterans have suffered prolonged hardships due to inconsistencies in the care they receive upon returning home from defending our country. That’s why yesterday I introduced the Injured and Amputee Veterans Bill of Rights. This bill will require the VA to post a written list of ‘rights’ that apply to every veteran in need of prosthetic limb and orthotic (O&P) care. While veterans currently have these rights, many veterans and even VA employees are unaware of the healthcare options offered to them – leaving the system with wide variations and inconsistencies across the country.”
“This bill educates veterans of their rights and expectations for quality care and empowers them to advocate for themselves in order to obtain the most appropriate care that meets their individual needs. To ensure these rights are upheld, this legislation requires the VA to resolve all and any disputes filed against a VA clinic or healthcare provider. We must do everything we can to aid the brave men and women of our military who have sacrificed so much for our country, and this bill is just one step in the right direction.”
Background on H.R. 3408 – Injured and Amputee Veterans Bill of Rights:
This legislation is a bipartisan measure to ensure veterans with injuries and amputations obtain appropriate prosthetic limb and orthotic (O&P) care. Inconsistency in care across the country is a problem frequently associated with the Veterans Administration, and this bill moves to create consistent and patient-centered healthcare.
H.R. 3408 would require the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) to post a written list of “rights” that apply to every veteran in need of O&P care. The list would be written into statute and the VA would be required to post the list of rights in every VA O&P clinic across the country, as well as on the VA website. The VA would be required to follow up and resolve any complaints by veterans who believe the VA is not meeting their O&P needs.
The rights provided by H.R. 3408 include:
- Access to appropriate O&P technology to meet individual veterans’ needs
- Ability to receive care from a private O&P practitioner of choice (the vast majority of veterans receive prosthetic care through 600 contracts with private O&P practitioners)
- A second opinion from VA medical personnel as to O&P treatment options
- Have a functional spare prosthetic limb or orthotic brace, and
- Timely and efficient prosthetic and orthotic care.
Veterans currently have these rights but there is wide variation and inconsistency across the country as to how these rights are implemented at the regional and local levels. This bill simply educates veterans of their rights and expectations for quality VA O&P treatment. It empowers veterans to advocate for themselves so they can obtain the most appropriate care that meets their individual needs, and this can make all the difference in the lives of veterans with disabling conditions.
H.R. 3408 is identical to H.R. 5428, which passed the house in December 2010 under suspension of the rules and was scored by the CBO as a “non-coster.”
In the News
Why are premiums on the rise under ObamaCare?
Lou Dobbs Tonight – Fox Business Network
Rep. Renee Ellmers, (R-NC), on the impact of ObamaCare on consumers.
Forget the apologies — fire Sebelius and delay ObamaCare
Column – FoxNews.com
Tell that to 50-year-old men dropped from their old plans because their new, ObamaCare-approved plans have to cover maternity care. As Representative Renee Ellmers asked Secretary Sebelius, “To the best of your knowledge, has a man ever delivered a baby?” Yet the federal government, in its infinite wisdom, will not approve insurance – even for men – that doesn’t include this coverage
Thousands of NC health insurance policy holders receive cancellation notices
News 14 Carolina
North Carolina Congresswoman Renee Ellmers brought the concerns of her constituents to Capitol Hill Wednesday and grilled Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius with questions. “If an American does not have health care coverage, they are essentially breaking the law. Is that not correct?” said Ellmers. “If someone can afford coverage and has that option and chooses not to buy coverage they will pay a fee,” said Sebelius.
Lessons from Ellmers: How to Ask Questions in a Hearing
Breitbart Big Government
However, Rep. Renee Ellmers (R-NC) avoided these pitfalls and used her limited time to full effect by following a few simple rules: ask yes or no questions, ask questions to which you already know the answer, and be prepared to respond to bad answers with more yes/no questions. Let the Democrats, who have to defend Obamacare, waste their time on open-ended explanations. Watch Ellmers in action here.
GOP Rep. Renee Ellmers: ‘Start over’ on health care
The Washington Times
Rep. Renee Ellmers, North Carolina Republican, said she came to Washington to work on meaningful health care reform, but that Obamacare is not it. “My plan is, let’s get rid of this failure and let’s start over with something that will work,” she said Monday on MSNBC. Mrs. Ellmers called for the delay in the implementation of President Obama’s health care law and asked what she should tell her constituents who are seeing their rates skyrocket.
Ellmers Introduces Bill to Stop Obamacare Penalties
News 14 Carolina
Congresswoman Renee Ellmers introduced a bill Thursday to delay penalties under the affordable care act. This comes after President Barack Obama pushed back the deadline to sign up by six weeks because of problems with the health website healthcare.gov. The administration will still levy fines against people not covered. Ellmers’ bill would change that.