Marietta Daily Journal

September 1, 2009

D.A. King
Columnist

ObamaCare claim disputed by research reports

President Obama went on nation-wide radio recently and addressed “rumors” that illegal aliens would benefit from the proposed health care reform legislation that didn’t get passed by his August-break deadline.

“This has been an example of just pure misinformation out there. None of the bills that have been voted on in Congress, and none of the proposals coming out of the White House propose giving coverage to illegal immigrants – none of them,” said the president.

The House bill most often quoted is officially titled ‘America’s Affordable Health Care Act of 2009’ (H.R. 3200) – unless it is renamed ‘The Dream Lives On Teddy Kennedy Memorial Socialized Medicine Act.’

People who seem to trust the president cite Section 246 of HR 3200, which reads: “Nothing in this subtitle shall allow Federal payments for affordability credits on behalf of individuals who are not lawfully present in the United States.”

According to the Federation for American Immigration Reform, Section 246 applies only to “affordability credit” access, but not to anyone enrolling in the public health insurance plan. Affordability credits can be used to offset the cost of health care coverage for individuals who enroll in private insurance plans, but there is no provision barring illegal aliens from enrolling in the taxpayer-funded public option.

Everything would have been much easier for Barrack Obama if the bill had been passed without public inspection as scheduled.

Two amendment attempts to mandate verification of legal immigration status for benefits using existing federal databases by congressional skeptics, Rep. Dean Heller, (R-Nev.) and Nathan Deal (R-GA), were voted down along party lines.

“An unelected bureaucrat would be able to decide who meets the eligibility requirements for publicly funded health care, effectively taking Congress out of the process and allowing the protections we already have under the law to prevent illegals from receiving these types of benefits to be eroded and broken down,” says U.S. Rep. Phil Gingrey (R-Marietta).

Other news that no doubt qualifies as more “misinformation” at the White House ministry of truth, hope and change comes from the Congressional Research Service, the research arm for Congress.

According to a recent CRS report, “a Health Insurance Exchange would begin operation in 2013 and would offer private plans alongside a public option … HR 3200 does not contain any restrictions on noncitizens whether legally or illegally present, or in the United States temporarily or permanently.”

Uh-oh.

It’s maybe a good thing for these folks that the White House program for people to report damaging and “fishy” information about ObamaCare has been quietly ended, ehh?

The report, released August 25th is titled “Treatment of Noncitizens in H.R. 3200.”

The Congressional Research Service was established in 1914 under the name ‘Legislative Reference Service’ and by an act of Congress adopted its current title in 1970.

A quick look at its Web site explains the mission of this team of nearly 700 employees working in Washington: “The CRS is committed to supporting an informed national legislature – by developing creative approaches to policy analysis, anticipating legislative needs and responding to specific requests from legislators in a timely manner. With a rigorous adherence to our key values, CRS provides analysis that is authoritative, confidential, objective and nonpartisan.”

CRS includes “more than 450 policy analysts, attorneys, information professionals and experts in a variety of disciplines – from law, economics and foreign affairs to defense and homeland security, public administration, education, health care, immigration, energy, environmental protection, science and technology.”

House Judiciary Committee Ranking Member Lamar Smith (R-Texas) asks a valid question: “If President Obama is committed to ensuring that illegal immigrants do not benefit from the bill – as he says he is – why not include the same verification mechanisms in this bill as already exist for other federal benefits programs?

Indeed.

Most Americans – including this one – think that we can do better on making affordable health insurance available to more people. But from watching “the news,” what has become known as the “public option” – and expanding the opportunities for people who were able to escape capture at our borders to access public benefits – doesn’t seem to be going over too well.

According to a recent Zogby International poll, President Obama’s popularity has dropped to a record low, with just 45 percent of voters now in approval of his performance.

All of the people can’t be fooled all of the time.

D.A. King of east Cobb is president of the Dustin Inman Society, which is opposed to illegal immigration.

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