Publisher's Note: Jim Bispo's weekly column appears in the Beaufort Observer.
Out of left field comes the Administration announcement that implementation of one of the more contentious requirements of Obamacare will be delayed for a year (i.e. until 2015). Never mind what the legislation says. The requirement that is being delayed is the requirement for employers with 50 or more employees to provide health insurance for their employees or face fines. They are not required to provide health insurance for those employees working 30 hours or less per week.
How many entrepreneurs who have built their business up to 50 or more employees do you suppose got there because of all the things the government has provided for them as the Anointed One opined some time back?? Among those not "eating at the public trough" (like Solyndra - and a lot more who are); those whose own resources were "on the line pretty much got there through careful planning, hard work, making good business decisions, and perhaps a little good luck - no matter what the Anointed One says..
So what do you suppose is the first "work around" to be dreamt up?? That would be to make the old 30 hour "part time" workweek into the new 30 hour "full time" workweek. How happy do you suppose that would make the impacted mostly middle class employees, most of whom are very likely voters?? Short answer: Not very... But what do they know??
Of course on the assumption that the same amount of work needs to be done as before ObamaCare, those entrepreneurs should be in the market for enough more employees to make up for the losses. That means that for every three individuals relegated to the new (30 hour) full time work week, one new person would need to be hired to pick up the slack. Just think what that will do the unemployment rate. It simply has to go down. Do you suppose the Congressional Staff folks who wrote the ObamaCare bill did that on purpose so as to improve the unemployment statistic?? Naw... It seems more like a "fortuitous" unanticipated consequence (depending on how one looks at "fortuitous").
When the Anointed One and his minions say they are unable to meet their own deadlines and must delay implementation of the Prez' "Signature Achievement", it becomes ever more clear just how little regard they have for the intellect of the American public. They claim they need more time to get the program up and running, and they expect the populace to believe them. Unfortunately a lot of folks will actually believe them. That would be the same folks who believe everything the Anointed One reads off the ubiquitous Teleprompters all the while ignoring the lack of follow-up. And, by the way, just how long do you suppose we have known about the implementation date?? Would something like a little over three years ring a bell?? Hmmm...
Surely delaying this atrocity past the mid-term election in Nov. 2014 has nothing to do with the Dems trying very hard to get the House back (and keeping the Senate). How do you suppose "working folks" would feel about being subjected to the new 30 hour workweek?? Add to that how they might feel about having their health insurance costs increase significantly and the Prez has a recipe for losing another mid-term election.
Think back several years. When the health care fiasco was signed into law, it provided for a lot of "goodies" early on. "Children" up to the age or 26 were able to stay on their parent's health insurance policies. (Never mind that 15 year olds were "big enough"to obtain "morning after" pills without even parental knowledge.) Sandra Fluke demanded, and presumably got, her birth control medication paid for by someone else (i.e. the long suffering taxpayers - most of whom could come no where near being able to afford tuition etc. at George Washington University that she enjoyed). Talk about hypocrisy...
And now, guess what. The time has come to pay the piper. Many employers must enroll everyone. Healthy youngsters must buy health insurance to help pay for the seniors' big dollar procedures which seem to be synonymous with getting old(er) as well as to cover all the new folks who are to be covered. Guess what. Those chickens were about to come home to roost just before the next election when the bills begin to show up. At that point reality begins to set in (i.e. there is no free lunch). When the bills come due and all those folks who demanded health care for all realize they are on the hook to pay those bills, it suddenly is not so likely to seem like such a good idea. They begin to realize that they have "been had" (again). And guess how irate taxpayers vote when they feel as though they have "been had". I would suggest that it might be against those who have done the dastardly deed unless the Prez' Spin masters are able to turn the blame toward the reps (which, when coupled with the seemingly unending naivete of the Reps, they seem to be pretty good at) .
Surely, Valerie or one of the Davids or someone figured all that stuff out. But then what was needed was a story to support avoiding the unpleasantness until after the election. In the tradition of the Benghazi story(s), the Snowden story(s), and Eric Holder's AP wire tapping and James Rosen story(s), the delayed implementation was announced. Could that have been on the Friday after the Fourth of July for a reason?? But it was not a politically motivated decision. Of course not...
In the meantime, the individual mandate to purchase health insurance remains a requirement. The big difference is that individuals do not have a powerful lobby (as do businesses) to help protect them from this type of idiocy. AARP doesn't seem to be any help protecting the seniors. They are too busy selling medigap insurance or whatever... Individuals may not get quite as exercised as businesses because their "fine" for failure to obey I believe is less than $100. It'll cost a few mid-term votes, but I rather expect not too many.
In the meantime we should be thankful to the Administration for taking such good care of our health care cost, availability, and coverage. Think - If you like your health care provider, you will not have to change. Think - Your costs will decrease. Think - Your coverage will increase. Think about all the other health care promises the Anointed One made. I suppose we really should be thankful. Thankful that the Dems didn't do an even bigger job on us.
D'ya think??
