On Tuesday, Politico reported that the next ObamaCare “time-bomb” will hit in the middle of next year, when millions of small business owners will face skyrocketing health insurance premiums. The announcements of the higher premiums will come just weeks before the mid-term elections and present a threat to all Democrats who supported ObamaCare. This threat is greater, though, for Sen. Mary Landrieu, who made health care savings for small business a central justification for her support of ObamaCare.
During debate on ObamaCare in 2009, Landrieu went to the Senate floor to explain her support of the law. “I am voting for this bill because it achieves the goals I laid out at the beginning of this debate: it drives down costs and expands affordable health care choices for millions of families and small businesses in Louisiana and around the nation,” Landrieu said. “Any claim to the contrary, is a pathetic lie meant to derail this bill, a tactic that was all too common during this debate.”
Unfortunately for Sen. Landrieu, history has shown that the “pathetic lie” is the argument that “if you like your plan, you can keep it.” It has also been proven that ObamaCare will increase existing health insurance premiums and likely force small businesses to drop coverage, forcing their employees into the broken exchanges.
As Politico reported, “Chris Foley of Abbot Benefits, a Houston-based insurance broker firm, said he expected about 75 percent of his clients to see ‘a noticeable increase’ in premiums when they renew under the new Obamacare rules.”
Sen. Landrieu is Chair of the Senate Small Business Committee and is in a unique position to know the impact ObamaCare will have on small businesses. The negative impact has been an open secret. Politico notes, “Insurers have been warning for months that the Affordable Care Act will lead to premium increases for some small businesses — it was part of their pitch to get employers to renew their old coverage early.”
That “old coverage” will expire next year. In October, just weeks before the midterm elections, small businesses around the country will learn how much their premiums will increase and whether or not they can continue to provide coverage to their employees.
Landrieu based her deciding vote on ObamaCare on claims that it would save small businesses money. That isn’t turning out to be the case. Fortunately, Louisiana voters will have a choice next November. If they like their Senator, they can keep her.