Although Obamacare is the popular nomenclature for H.R. 3590 – otherwise known as the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act – the Democrats’ version of health care reform is becoming less and less popular as each day passes. Speaker Nancy Pelosi said it best when she said that we would have to pass this bill to find out what is in it. Each day, Americans continue to uncover new information about Obamacare, and from what I am hearing in Northwest Georgia, they don’t like it. Obamacare has already detrimentally affected Northwest Georgians in their business-development endeavors and put many in the region out of work. Moreover, it has largely failed to live up to any of the promises that were made about expanding coverage and lowering costs. Patients and providers alike have felt the impact, and this is just the beginning—a majority of the over 2,000 page law has not even gone into effect yet. As a physician for 32 years, I have been warning about these adverse affects before the first draft of Obamacare was introduced back in 2009.

A particular component of Obamacare I’ve been thinking a lot about recently is how Medicare costs are rising despite the Democrats’ promises to the contrary. This week, Richard Foster, the actuary for the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid, affirmed the fears that many physicians and Republicans were worried would become realities under the new health care law; that the $571 billion dollar cuts to Medicare would not remedy the waste, fraud, and abuse in the program, but rather leave many seniors without the coverage that they once had.

In a letter to Senate Republicans, Foster said – as a result of the health care overhaul – that Medicare Advantage plans will have “less generous benefit packages” next year. What Richard Foster really means is that the cuts to Medicare, under Obamacare, will mean as many as 11 million seniors across America will see a reduction in benefits, and furthermore, that the rates of a less desirable plan will increase. He also means that the 11 million seniors with this plan will be faced with the uncertainty of being able to keep their Medicare coverage, including 14,022 citizens in Georgia’s 11th Congressional District. At a time when the economy is in a weakened state, Obamacare will increase Medicare costs by $346 in the coming year, and up to $923 by 2017 when Medicare is set to become insolvent. You can find details on Medicare cost adjustments here. This is a far cry from the Democrats promise when they told us that Obamacare would cut health care costs for our seniors.

Why President Obama, Secretary Sebelius, and Congressional Democrats felt that it would be wise to ignore these staggering statistics—which were brought to their attention prior to Obamacare’s passage—is beyond me. This is why I will continue to bring the details of this bill to light, and why I am hopeful for its repeal.