Tagged

Today’s Agenda

Today, Senator Lee will be meeting with local officials and constituents in Morgan, Brigham City, and Layton. He will also be holding a town hall meeting at Bridgerland Applied Technology College in Brigham City, and the meeting will be streamed online via Senator Lee’s Ustream feed, which can be watched directly on the senator’s Facebook page here.

From the Senator’s Desk

The House Ways and Means Committee is out today with a report analyzing one of the many reasons why Obamacare’s costs could skyrocket.  According to the study:

• 71 of the nation’s largest employers could save more than $28 billion in 2014 alone, and $422.4 billion over a decade, by deciding to drop health insurance coverage for their 10.2 million employees and dependents and paying the $2,000 per-employee penalty instead. 

• The average savings per firm from dropping coverage amounts to more than $400 million in 2014 alone, and $5.9 billion over a decade.

• The average savings per employee from dropping coverage amounts to $4,821 in 2014, and just under $10,000 in 2023.

• 84% of responding firms indicated they expect their health costs will increase FASTER in the future than they did before Obamacare passed.  The responding firms have faced annual increases of 5.9% over the past five years, but they expect costs to rise at a 7.6% rate in the future.

This morning’s report further reinforces the numerous prior studies, papers, briefs, reports, employer questionnaires, consultant presentations, surveys, op-eds, interviews, quotes, and comments from other prominent Democrats suggesting that employers will drop coverage in numbers far greater than the White House lets on.  Even Jon Stewart, in an interview with Secretary Sebelius in January, would not believe the Administration’s line that employers would keep offering coverage: Stewart stated that there would likely be a “big dump” by employers into Exchanges, meaning Obamacare would become “sort of, a back door, of government, not a takeover necessarily, but of a government responsibility for the health care.”

Today’s developments again raise the obvious question:  If the numbers suggest dropping coverage is a rational thing for employers to do, why will they keep offering insurance?  And if even liberals like Jon Stewart are convinced employers will dump coverage, does anyone believe they will be permitted to keep their current coverage under Obamacare?

On Twitter

SenMikeLee

I will be streaming my Brigham City townhall tonight @ 7:00 p.m. Tweet me your questions using #leetownhall: http://ustre.am/ESPP #utpol

SenLeeComs

.@SenMikeLee holding town hall TONIGHT 7pm MT. Come in person or watch LIVE online #utpol http://www.stgeorgeutah.com/news/archive/2012/04/30/town-hall-meetings-with-sen-lee-to-broadcast-over-internet/

SenLeePressSec

.@SenMikeLee is spending the day in Morgan, Layton, and Brigham City. Don't miss tonight's town hall at 7pm MT! http://bit.ly/HMHvUC #utpol

SenLeeResearch

Growth and growth expectations both racing downward: http://bit.ly/ICICZE #tcot #tlot #economy #GDP #jobs

Around the Water Cooler

Critics slam Senate for failing to pass a budget — three years running

Democrats in the United States Senate are facing a rush of criticism as April 29 came and went, marking the third anniversary since the Senate passed a budget under the guidance of the Congressional Budget Act of 1974.

Solyndra Not Dealing With Toxic Waste At Milpitas Facility

Three months ago, CBS 5 caught Solyndra tossing millions of dollars worth of brand new glass tubes used to make solar panels. Now the bankrupt solar firm, once touted as a symbol of green technology, may be trying to abandon toxic waste.

Looking Ahead

Tomorrow, Senator Lee will be meeting with local officials and constituents in Garden City and Logan. He will also be holding a 7:00 PM (MST) town hall meeting at the Historic Courthouse in Logan, and the meeting will be streamed online via Senator Lee’s Ustream feed, which can be watched directly on the senator’s Facebook page here.