Saturday, in the Republican Weekly Address, I talked about how the president’s health care law continues to affect millions of Americans. Women and families, in particular, are being targeted by this government-knows-best policy.
Although the Healthcare.gov website is somewhat improved, many problems still remain, including serious concerns many have regarding the safety and security of the online exchanges. The Washington Post reported this week that the federal exchange website is still plagued with errors that have “affected roughly one-third of the people who have signed up for health plans.” This is one of the first public acknowledgments by the Administration concerning the extent of the website failures.
Problems with the website are not the only issue with Obamacare—the real issue at hand is the law itself. Since day one, Obamacare has been a disaster. Washington has no business taking part in healthcare, and the American people deserve much more than a broken website and a President’s broken promises.
This week in a hearing of the Energy and Commerce Health Subcommittee, we heard testimony on what beneficiaries of Medicare Advantage should expect under Obamacare. We learned that Obamacare raids $300 billion from the Medicare Advantage program. Additionally, Obamacare cuts will cause 7.4 million seniors to lose their existing Medicare Advantage coverage. This is completely unacceptable and unfair to our nation’s senior citizens.
The impact of Obamacare can be seen in every part of our country— there are millions of people who have received cancelation notices from their healthcare providers and many who have experienced an increase in their premiums. These hardships have been felt even by some of the president’s most loyal supporters. According to the latest Harvard University Institute of Politics poll, 57% of “millennials” disapprove of Obamacare. Furthermore, less than a third of 18-29 year olds report that they are likely to enroll in the exchange.
Obamacare is not sustainable and will continue to devastate American families and businesses. Republicans favor patient-centered, free market alternatives to Obamacare such as H.R. 3121— the Republican Study Committee’s “American Health Care Reform Act,” which I cosponsored. Click here to become a citizen cosponsor of H.R. 3121.
Please share the information in this newsletter with your friends and continue to share your Obamacare stories with me through this page on my website. Feel free to reach out to my office with any concerns or questions, and thank you for staying informed and engaged.
Ellmers Delivers GOP Weekly Address to the Nation
I was asked by House Republican leadership to deliver the GOP’s weekly address to the nation. I wanted to use this opportunity to discuss how the President’s healthcare law continues to affect millions of Americans. I also wanted to relay to Americans what the Republican Party is doing to protect them from further harm. This marks the second time that House Leadership has asked for me to deliver this address.
Below is an excerpt from my speech:
“Like many of you, I’m frustrated with the president’s health care law, especially where jobs and working families are concerned. I say this not just as a congresswoman and chair of the Republican Women’s Policy Committee; I say it as a nurse and the mother of a son in college.
After all, it’s often women who make the healthcare decisions for their families. We put a lot of time and thought into these choices and how they’ll affect our budgets.
So by canceling your insurance – despite a promise to let you keep your plan – the Obama administration is essentially saying it knows what’s best for you and your family. Not only that, they are making you pay more – usually much more – and in many cases, taking away the doctor you’ve been seeing for years.
If you want to talk about a ‘war on women,’ look no further than this health care law.”
To view my entire address, please click here.
Problems Continue on Healthcare.gov
On Sunday, I appeared on America’s News Headquarters to discuss the problems with the Obamacare website and the millions of Americans who have had their health insurance policies canceled and premiums raised. Click here or on the image above to watch the interview.
The Website Errors are Only the Beginning
I released the following statement this week after participating in a special order with my colleagues on the Republican Doctors Caucus:
“Obamacare is turning family budgets upside down and inflicting unnecessary pain on millions of Americans. Nationwide, women make the healthcare decisions for themselves and their families. So by cancelling their insurance plans, the Obama administration is now saying that they know what is best for you and your family. Women across the country knew these plans were adequate. They knew what was best for their families, but that was never good enough for the Democrats who declared ‘WE know what’s best for you and your families.’ We were all sold a bill of goods that the president knew he could not deliver. If you want to talk about a ‘war on women,’ look no further than the White House.”
“On the front page of today’s Washington Post, it reads ‘Healthcare.gov Makes Frequent Enrollment Errors.’ This comes only days after the Obama administration claimed victory for fixing the disaster-prone website and rebranding the error messages that continue to pop up as a ‘queuing system.’ Since day one, Obamacare has been a complete disaster.”
Click here to read my full statement.
Click here or on the image below to watch my speech in its entirety.
In the News
Ellmers to give Saturday GOP weekly address
Raleigh News & Observer
House Speaker John Boehner’s office announced Friday morning that Rep. Renee Ellmers will give the Republicans’ weekly address on Saturday. The Republican congresswoman from Dunn plans to talk about “the House’s ongoing focus on jobs and securing fairness for all Americans hurting from the president’s fundamentally flawed health care law,” said a press release from the House Republican leader’s office.
GOP Men Should Be ‘a Little More Sensitive’ to Women, Boehner Says
Roll Call
The House Republican Conference has also run afoul of the 19 GOP women in the 113th Congress. Most recently, Rep. Renee Ellmers of North Carolina, chairwoman of the Republican Women’s Policy Committee, stood up at a members’ meeting to chide Boehner for appointing only men to a special negotiating committee convened at one point during the government shutdown. “[Boehner] literally got up and said, ‘You know what, Renee, that was a mistake,’” Ellmers recalled. “And I believe that it was just a very innocent mistake, and I don’t think they realized how that looked. … I believe it is not a mistake that will be made again.”
LETTER: Others should follow Ellmers’s example
Letter to the Editor – The Sanford Herald
“There has been an unusual lack of interest in letter writing to the editor recently. I am willing to break the ice with a few comments…Many thanks to our U.S. Rep. Renee Ellmers for her opposition to some of these blunders by other liberal politicians. We need other senators and congressmen to follow her lead for the 2013 midterm elections to save our country before it’s too late.”
Obama may wish to pass the buck
Letter to the Editor – Fayetteville Observer
Many thanks to our U.S. Rep. Renee Ellmers for her opposition to some of these blunders by other liberal politicians. We need other senators and congressmen to follow her lead for the 2014 midterm elections to save our country before it’s too late.