Delay In Employer Mandate Gives Republicans A Chance To Unwind ObamaCare

 

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Many of us who want ObamaCare repealed are eager to see what comes of the one year delay in enforcement to January 1, 2015 of the part of ObamaCare, known as the employer mandate, that requires employers with 50 or more employees to offer government approved healthcare insurance to workers or pay a $2,000 per full-time employee fine.  My specific interest in this delay questions the legality of BO's unilateral decision to enforce only parts of the crippling law.  A case can be made that a president is required by the Constitution to faithfully execute our laws – not parts of them.  How does BO have the authority to unilaterally delay the part of the law mandating employers to provide healthcare insurance or pay fines?

 

I am anxious to see if this legal question is the opening champions of repealing ObamaCare like Michele Bachmann & Steve King have been waiting for. 

 

Now the implementation of ObamaCare has run into several speed humps since passage in March 2010. 

 

First - Roberts ruled that states can op-out of the law's Medicaid expansion & 28 states have indicated they will or may op-out. 

 

Second - 36 states have refused to fully set up the troubled healthcare-insurance exchanges (see above graph) that will allow people who do not have employer coverage to buy insurance through the exchanges with part of the premiums paid by government subsidies – the federal government will run the exchanges in the states colored yellow.

 

Although BO acts as though he delayed the employer mandate to help businesses the reality is that the government's computer systems connecting businesses, the IRS, Social Security, DHS, & all of the participating insurance companies will not be ready on October 1 for exchange operation & January 1 for enforcing the employer mandate – both dates specified in the law.

 

So the postponement of the employer mandate to furnish healthcare insurance or pay a fine is just the latest problem & in truth it may be more of a political problem BO wants to head off than an administrative computer problem when you realize the new effective date for the employer mandate is right after the 2014 midterm congressional elections.  The postponement merely delays a potential problem that could cost the Democrats a few House or Senate seats & oh does BO want to control both Chambers of Congress his last two years in office. 

 

The employer mandate postponement really could have a small impact because most firms with over 50 employees already offer healthcare insurance.  BO's political fear is that if he does not delay the employer mandate past the midterm elections employers might drop healthcare insurance coverage with the employees dropped from coverage going on the exchanges thereby raising the government's cost of ObamaCare.  Since the employer mandate only applies to full-time employees, defined as employees who work 30 hours or more, it also could threaten to depress full-time employment right before the congressional midterms. 

 

With a giant hole in ObamaCare in 2014 – parts of the law in effect & key parts not in effect - the government will rely on the honor system in approving applications for the premium subsidies absent employer verifications through the aforementioned computer systems.

 

BO's delay in implementing the employer mandate gives the Republicans a chance to unwind the ObamaCare step by step implementation that has been going on for over three years.  With the completion of each step BO's goal of universal single payer healthcare insurance gets closer. 

 

The Republican House leadership has written a letter to BO detailing new questions & concerns with ObamaCare based on the above & it is a good first step.  The best part of the letter is that the Republicans ask for a response by July 16 so we won't have to wait long to see what happens, if anything.