Now more experienced, Yoho still battling 'Obamacare'

Source: Ocala Star-Banner, Fla.mini storageDec. 29--U.S. Rep. Ted Yoho started the year as a rookie congressman railing against the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act. He is more seasoned politically as 2013 ends, but he's still working to unravel President Barack Obama's signature health care legislation.The Gainesville Republican recently introduced two bills designed to undo Obamacare, as many refer to the law, or punish those who helped bring it about.The first measure calls for the repeal of the health care program if specific enrollment targets are not met. The Nullifying Unconstitutional Mandate By Evaluating Results, or NUMBER, Act gives the Obama administration until June 1 to prove that people are signing up as anticipated.According to the bill, the administration must certify that 7 million people successfully obtained insurance through one of the health care exchanges by March 31, the deadline for the open-enrollment period.That figure was based on a Congressional Budget Office projection of initial enrollment.People who fail to enroll by the end of March will pay the law's tax penalties.For 2014, the additional tax per adult would be $95, or 1 percent of income, whichever is greater.Yoho's office maintains that not meeting that target will mean more costly insurance plans.Yoho's second bill, known as the Government Lacks Insight To Choose Health, or GLITCH, Act, would cut the pay of Department Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius.Under the measure, Sebelius' $199,700 annual salary would be immediately reduced by 5 percent, with subsequent monthly reductions to follow, for each month that the healthcare.gov website is not "fully functional."The proposed NUMBER Act has 19 co-sponsors, all Republican. That's not surprising given the unyielding opposition from House Republicans since the Affordable Care Act was enacted in 2010.The seven listed supporters of the GLITCH Act include one Democrat -- Rep. Alan Grayson of Orlando.Grayson's office said he agreed to co-sponsor the bill because he considers it reasonable to hold Sebelius accountable -- in a "prudent and fair manner" -- for the well-publicized delay in implementing the healthcare.gov website.Yoho's staff added that accountability is his goal as well.In a stat儲存ment, Yoho said, "The Obama administration likes to claim that this health care law is hugely popular and is wanted by the American people. I disagree. If the administration can't even make their own target numbers, then the American taxpayer should not be further burdened by this terrible law. This commonsense bill simply holds the administration accountable to those numbers, and if they are not met, the Affordable Care Act is fully repealed."House Republicans have voted at least 47 times to repeal or defund the Affordable Care Act since its adoption, but they have yet to thwart its implementation.Thus, Yoho's bill stands little chance of passing as long as Obama remains in the White House and the Democrats control the Senate.Yoho, in his own way, worked against his own bill -- although his hand was somewhat forced.According to the Tampa Bay Times, Yoho signed up for Obamacare through the insurance exchange offered in Washington, D.C. The law contains a provision, first championed back in 2009 by GOP Sen. Chuck Grassley of Iowa, mandating that Yoho and the rest of Congress surrender their previous health insurance and sign up for coverage in accordance with the Affordable Care Act. Or, in lieu of that, lawmakers could opt for enrolling in the exchanges set up by their home states or selecting private insurance. Florida chose not to establish an exchange.The distinction, as the Los Angeles Times recently reported, is that members of Congress who chose to enroll in Washington could receive taxpayer-funded subsidies that pay up to 75 percent of their monthly premiums. Yoho's office confirmed that he did enroll in the Washington market, but said that has not changed his opinion that the law must go.A spokesman said Yoho was honoring his commitment to enroll if his constituents had to, as part of his belief that Congress ought to be subject to the laws they pass."He is still working towards repeal, but as long as his constituents are subject to this law, he will be, too," Yoho spokesman Omar Raschid said in an email.___Contact Bill Thompson at 867-4117 or bill.thompson@starbanner.com.Copyright: ___ (c)2013 Ocala Star-Banner (Ocala, Fla.) Visit the Ocala Star-Banner (Ocala, Fla.) at .ocala.com Distributed by MCT Information Services迷你倉