Delta Air Lines says Obamacare and rising medical costs will explode its healthcare expenses by $100 million.
Delta executives delivered the startling statistic to Obama Administration officials in a private memorandum obtained by RedState.com. Fox News confirmed the letter’s authenticity.
“The cost of providing health care to our employees will increase by nearly $100,000,000 next year,” the Delta memo said.
On Friday, Delta issued a statement reconfirming the rise in costs.
“Like many large companies, Delta faces significantly increased healthcare costs in 2014 and beyond. Delta will absorb the vast majority of those increased costs so that we can continue providing a high value, high quality health plan.”
Delta is not alone in feeling the Obamacare crunch; several companies are slashing spousal healthcare plans and cutting full-time workers to part-time status to avoid costly Obamacare penalties. United Parcel Services (UPS) has announced plans to drop 15,000 workers’ spouses due to Obamacare, and a recent survey of 420 companies found that 40% of businesses are gearing up to change their insurance plans in 2014 when Obamcacare begins.
Companies are not the only ones cutting back; state governments and universities are as well.
On Thursday, the Washington Post reported that “many cash-strapped cities and counties facing the prospect of shelling out hundreds of thousands of dollars in new health-care costs under the Affordable Care Act are opting instead to reduce the number of hours their part-time employees work.”
The Obama White House, however, denies that Obamacare is hurting jobs.
“Since the ACA became law, nearly 90% of the gain in employment has been in full-time positions,” says White House Council of Economic Advisers chairman Jason Furman.
According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, 77% of the jobs created from January through July have been part-time.