After Barack Obama went on the record to "absolutely reject this notion" that the individual health insurance mandate is a tax, his administration is now arguing exactly the opposite in court. The Department of Justice filed a motion to dismiss a Florida-based lawsuit seeking to overturn the health care overhaul and, according to American Spectator, "cited the Anti-Injunction Act, which restricts courts from interfering with the government's ability to collect taxes." A DoJ memo argues that "no suit for the purposes of restraining the assessment or collection of any tax shall be maintained in any court by any person." So for those wondering if Obama's "no individual tax" promise would stand in a court of law, you should soon get your answer.
Meanwhile, with mid-term elections fast approaching, the Obama camp is putting insurance companies on notice not to raise rates artificially because of the new law. U.S. Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius issued the following Orwellian warning: "We want to caution insurance companies that rate increases would be watched very closely." As Aetna CEO Ronald Williams noted regarding the health care bill, however, "I think there was a recognition that consumers are going to get more. When you get more, you pay more." Apparently, this administration has yet to acknowledge basic economics.
No comments:
Post a Comment