Politicians on Capitol Hill are engaged in talks to draft legislation that would exempt them and their staffs from a requirement of President Barack Obama's health reform law that they enroll in the health insurance exchanges for health coverage, according to a report by Politico.
The move is politically risky, as legislators would be exempting themselves from the exchanges the health law and its backers have touted as solutions to the uninsured crisis in American healthcare. Republicans and opponents of the law would likely highlight such a move by saying it gives evidence that the law is so burdensome that even lawmakers who voted for it wouldn't choose its provisions for themselves.
Some argue the exchanges would lead some on the Hill, especially lower-paid junior aides, to flee to the private sector rather than take what could be a financial hit if they were forced to pay for their own health insurance on the exchanges, according to the report.
Washington State Floats Plan to Drop Health Plans, Push to Exchanges
Democratic PPACA Drafter Fears "Train Wreck"
The move is politically risky, as legislators would be exempting themselves from the exchanges the health law and its backers have touted as solutions to the uninsured crisis in American healthcare. Republicans and opponents of the law would likely highlight such a move by saying it gives evidence that the law is so burdensome that even lawmakers who voted for it wouldn't choose its provisions for themselves.
Some argue the exchanges would lead some on the Hill, especially lower-paid junior aides, to flee to the private sector rather than take what could be a financial hit if they were forced to pay for their own health insurance on the exchanges, according to the report.
More Articles on Health Insurance Exchanges:
8 States Spent $28M in Exchange Grants, Then Dropped PlansWashington State Floats Plan to Drop Health Plans, Push to Exchanges
Democratic PPACA Drafter Fears "Train Wreck"