Sen. Thune: Obama Gives Unions Obamacare Exemption

Sen. John Thune (R-SD), the chairman of the Senate GOP conference, has discovered that President Barack Obama’s administration has decided to grant an exemption to labor unions from Obamacare’s reinsurance tax.

On page 70 of regulations the administration published on Monday, Thune’s office noted that a rule would exempt Taft-Hartley union healthcare plans from from the Obamacare reinsurance tax. Thune’s office noted in the release, provided to Breitbart News, that the exemption would most likely end up forcing others who still need to pay the tax to pay more. That includes companies, charities, and faith-based organizations.

“By publishing this proposed rule, the Obama administration moves closer to ensuring that its political allies will receive special treatment under the law,” Thune said upon the discovery. “Despite endorsing ObamaCare and working fervently to get it passed, unions are now experiencing the ugly reality of this law, and they want out. This exemption is crony capitalism at its worst. I will continue to push for passage of my Union Tax Fairness Act, which would ensure that unions are not treated as if they are above the law.”

The Obamacare reinsurance tax is slated to take effect in 2014 and, according to Thune’s office, “requires all self-insured plans to pay a tax for each person covered under a health plan.”

“The tax was designed to provide funds to health care plans in the ObamaCare exchanges to help absorb the cost of care for people with pre-existing conditions,” Thune’s office said in the release.

Thune has a bill, the Union Tax Fairness Act (S. 1724) with 12 cosponsors designed to prevent the White House from exempting unions from the Obamacare reinsurance tax.