Surprise: Team Obama Delays Equal Coverage Provision

by William Teach | January 19, 2014 8:45 am

Another week, another part of Obamacare delayed by unilateral executive fiat

(Fox News[1]) The Obama administration is reportedly delaying enforcement of another aspect of ObamaCare, one that prohibits employers from providing better health benefits to top executives than those being offered to regular employees.

According to The New York Times[2], tax officials said they would not enforce the provision in 2014 as they had not yet issued the appropriate regulations.

It’s The Law

The Affordable Care Act, commonly known as ObamaCare, says employer-sponsored health plans must not discriminate “in favor of highly compensated individuals” with respect to either eligibility or benefits, and provides a tax break for employer-sponsored insurance, while demanding employers not provide better coverage to higher-paid employees.

Yet Bruce I. Friedland, a spokesman for the I.R.S., told the New York Times that employers would not have to comply until the agency issued regulations or other guidance.

The penalty for this would be $100 a day for each individual who has one of these plans, charged to the company.

Interestingly, the NY Times article is buried on page A18 of the Sunday edition of the paper. It’s also buried on the web edition. It’s also buried on the website of the Washington Post, though it was prominent on the Android app. Anyhow, this line from the NY Times article is precious

But translating that goal into reality has proved difficult.

That could be a mantra for the “Affordable” Care Act. Things aren’t working out the way they should. The launch of the federally run website was a disaster, the same for quite a few of the state run websites. Getting the right mix of healthy people to sick people hasn’t worked out so well, along with getting young folks to sign up. The numerous delays of various parts of the law. Implementing a system for people to actually pay for the insurance. Getting them insurance cards. Showing that people are actually enrolled. All the waivers.

And we haven’t even truly hit the part where people try and use the insurance. Or when employers start dropping coverage in droves. Or when rationing starts occurring. When insurers need a bailout. The Independent Payment Advisory Board starts determining who gets what treatment, which would seem to be “unequal coverage”, discrimination, eh?

Why would Team Obama delay the insurance equal coverage provision? One is simply incompetence. As usual, they do not have their guano wired tight. Second, a lot of the companies and executives donate money to Democrats, and they won’t be happy to donate for the midterms if their companies are getting nailed with penalties and/or losing their high-end insurance plans. With Team Obama, never discount the politics nor the incompetence.

Crossed at Pirate’s Cove[3]. Follow me on Twitter @WilliamTeach[4].

Endnotes:
  1. Fox News: http://www.foxnews.com/politics/2014/01/19/white-house-reportedly-delays-obamacare-equal-coverage-provision/
  2. The New York Times: http://www.nytimes.com/2014/01/19/us/rules-for-equal-coverage-by-employers-remain-elusive-under-health-law.html?_r=0
  3. Pirate’s Cove: http://www.thepiratescove.us/
  4. @WilliamTeach: http://twitter.com/WilliamTeach

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