As the rollout of Obamacare turns into an unmitigated disaster, nervous Senate Democrats up for re-election next year are changing their minds about delays in implementing the legislation, including delays individual mandate. Fox News has names:
Several Democratic senators are calling on the Obama administration to delay implementation of the health care law’s individual mandate, joining their Republican colleagues in saying it would be unfair to penalize Americans for not purchasing insurance when the main sign-up website is down.
The Democratic domino began to fall quickly Wednesday after Sen. Jeanne Shaheen, D-N.H. sent a letter calling on President Obama to extend registration beyond March 31, 2014.
Sen. Mark Pryor, R-Arctic, said in a statement behind schedule Wednesday: “I believe that given the technical issues, it is prudent to extend the time in which people can register.”
Shaheen and several of her moderate Democrat supporters, including Pryor, are running for re-election in 2014, no doubt noting widespread dissatisfaction with the launch of HealthCare.gov.
Sen. Joe Manchin of Virginia, who won’t be running for re-election next year, is working on a bill that would delay the IRS penalty by a year for anyone who doesn’t get insurance.
In case you missed it, Guy described the details leading up to this moment yesterday.
It’s truly a shame that this type of bipartisan effort didn’t happen before the government shutdown, when Republicans were calling for the same thing: a delay in the individual mandate. Here’s a flashback from September 30.
House Republicans will soon introduce a third proposal to maintain funding for the federal government, but it seems almost certain that it will be rejected by the Senate, like the previous two.
With just hours until the government shutdown, the office of House Speaker John Boehner (R-Ohio) confirmed that it will prepare a modern continuing resolution with attached amendments that would delay Obamacare’s individual term by one year and end employer health care contributions for members of Congress and their staff.
The result, of course, will be a Senate rejection because Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) has insisted that the Senate will not pass a continuing resolution that includes provisions for Obamacare.
Which Senator Marco Rubio worked on legislation this would require a delay in issuing an individual mandate until the Obamacare website is functioning well for a six-month period. Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid is expected to have as challenging a time as possible to bring the legislation to a vote.
“How are you going to go after people next year, using the IRS to punish them, if what you’re forcing them to do is not available to them,” Rubio (Fla.) said on Fox News’ “Fox and Friends.” “
So the bill I’m about to introduce essentially delays meeting that requirement for a while [Government Accountability] The Office has certified that it is operational and has been operating effectively for six months in a row,” Rubio added. “I think it’s a cautious approach given the problems the White House is facing,” he added.
No wonder the White House isn’t giving in yet. From White House Deputy Press Secretary Ed Schultz.
The deadline for implementing individual mandates has not changed. The deadline to sign up for insurance is March 31. That’s true. It’s true tonight
— Eric Schultz (@Schultz44) October 23, 2013
