RUSH: According to the Heritage Foundation, the Regime’s caught in a new Obamacare dilemma.
“Remember sequestration? Those automatic budget cuts that went into effect when Congress failed to do real budgeting a couple of years ago?” Well, guess what? Sequestration is running into Obamacare now. “Both laws have been around for awhile, but the Obama Administration hasnÂ’t done anything to prepare for their collision,” which is beginning to happen. “The cuts are hitting a set of subsidies that were supposed to help pay deductibles and co-pays for lower-income Americans with Obamacare coverage.”
Did you know that? Yes! The sequester, God bless it, God love the sequester, the sequester is hitting the subsidies. The sequester is preventing the subsidies from being paid. The sequester is legitimate budget cuts. “An Obama official pledged there would be a plan before the Obamacare exchanges opened on October 1, but that didnÂ’t happen.”
So now what? Well, Heritage says that there are two possible outcomes. In the Wall Street Journal today: “The first possibility is that individuals who have managed to enroll in subsidized health insurance will find theyÂ’ve been misled about their co-pays and deductibles. Families who currently think their plan will charge a $20 co-payment for doctor visits may instead face a $25 charge when the sequester kicks in. Individuals who now believe they face maximum out-of-pocket costs of $2,000 may end up paying hundreds more.”
The other option is to stick the insurance companies with the cuts and tell them to deal with it, and that would cost them about $286 million through next September. Heritage says that no matter which way the Regime goes on this it does not help and it does not look good. I could spend all day, again, on Obamacare. I could spend all day on the stats and figures that are starting to surface. But there is other news out there and your phone calls, and I want to start with phone calls right now. It’s Open Line Friday, and we’re gonna start Wilmington, Delaware, where there have been zero enrollees in Obamacare, zero. Here’s Eric. You’re up first today, sir. Great to have you. Hi.
CALLER: Hi, Rush. Glad to talk to you. Yeah, I have a suggestion. You know how they have charities where, like, you feed the children, you get a picture of the child that you’re paying for? For the Obama program —
RUSH: Wait. Wait, wait, wait, wait, wait, wait, wait. No. I’ve heard of that with a highway. You Adopt a Highway, they give you a picture of the stretch —
CALLER: No, these are charities like Feed the Children or something with other countries.
RUSH: Oh.
CALLER: You get a picture of that child.
RUSH: Oh, okay. Okay. Okay. Feed the Children.
CALLER: Yeah, I think the people that are paying the higher subsidies and supporting the other people should get a picture of the person that they’re supporting. It makes it a lot easier, and they should call it “Bend over for America,” the new program.
RUSH: (laughing) I like your idea. The problem is, you’d need a whole wall to make room for all the pictures of people that would need to be thanking you or that you would be supporting.
CALLER: It would make it easier to swallow, though, Rush, if you got the picture. At least writing the check, you feel a little bit better.
RUSH: How would that make it easier? Because you could look at who you’re personally helping?
CALLER: Yes.
RUSH: Put a face on who you’re — that would just make me angrier, particularly if the person in the picture was smiling. That would tick me off. I get a picture of the person I’m subsidizing, and they’re smiling. I’d think they’re mocking me. I’m gonna tell you, folks, the way to look at this, if you want to understand — I like to put things in real world terms, in terms of, you know, subsidizing certain people. You and your family, you are going to end up supporting, via subsidies, more people than the average NFL player does.