Latest Delay Mirrors Ellmers Bill - H.R. 3338 The Fairness in Failed Federal Exchanges Act

WASHINGTON – Congresswoman Renee Ellmers (R-NC-02) released the following statement this morning following the announcement that yet another Obamacare mandate will be delayed into next year:

"Once again, the Obama administration has dropped another major delay to their signature law right before a holiday season. We saw this before Independence Day, Thanksgiving, and now Christmas. It's the worst rollout of a policy I've ever seen - not to mention a blatant acknowledgement that this law will never be ready for primetime. Amateur hour has taken on a completely new form and this is nothing more than an all-out disaster for the proponents of a government-knows-best ideology. Enough is enough - this law has already caused incredible damage to American families and our economy and it's high time for the entire law to be fully repealed."

"I, like most Americans, am not the least bit surprised, which is why I introduced a bill back in October to make yesterday's delay permanent. H.R. 3338 - the Fairness in Failed Federal Exchange Act provides a hardship exemption for all Americans struggling under Obamacare, including those facing higher premiums and those struggling to navigate the disastrous system. The American people are demanding answers and deserve a permanent exemption from this law."

Background on the Fairness in Failed Federal Exchange Act (H.R. 3338)

Last night, the Obama administration announced another delay to their signature law, allowing a new temporary exemption for millions of people who are facing the cancellation of their health insurance policies. Under the new delay, they will be allowed to buy catastrophic coverage and be exempted from penalties if they go without insurance next year. This is a short term delay for a long term problem. Americans shopping for health coverage are facing major problems on the exchange website, leaving many to give up. One report showed that 47 states have faced frequent error messages, noting these problems may be caused by inadequate server capacity, poor software coding, and system architecture failure. Moreover, insurance companies have reported that the federal exchange is “generating flawed data,” including “duplicate enrollments, spouses reported as children, missing data fields, and suspect eligibility determinations.”

Yet despite these major malfunctions, and structural defects, the administration still plans to levy fines on individuals that unable to obtain coverage. This is unacceptable, especially since the Obama administration announced this summer that it will delay the employer mandate for big business. That's why Congresswoman Ellmers has introduced the Fairness in Failed Federal Exchanges Act, H.R. 3338. This bill will exempt people from the individual mandate penalty if they have gone without healthcare coverage for one month in 2014, or in a subsequent year, if an individual executes an attestation that the he or she has been unable to enroll in the exchange.

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