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Statement of Administration Policy: H.R. 3362 - Exchange Information Disclosure Act

January 09, 2014


STATEMENT OF ADMINISTRATION POLICY

(House)

(Rep. Terry, R-NE., and 7 cosponsors)

The Administration opposes House passage of H.R. 3362 because it would require unfunded, unprecedented, and unnecessary reporting requirements of Health Insurance Marketplaces that exceed those of other public and private programs.

The Affordable Care Act gives people greater control over their own health care and has already improved many aspects of the Nation's health care system. Beginning this year, millions of low- and middle-income Americans will be eligible to receive tax credits to help them purchase insurance and cost-sharing reductions to help with out-of-pocket expenses for coverage. Tens of millions of Americans who have previously been denied coverage due to pre-existing medical conditions will now be covered. The nearly one in two Americans under the age of 65 with pre?existing medical conditions will have the peace of mind that comes from knowing that they cannot be dropped from their health plan or denied coverage because of those conditions.

H.R. 3362 would add extraneous, costly, and unprecedented reporting requirements on States and the Federal Government. It would require the reporting of data on a weekly basis that is generally being provided on a monthly basis. Few major indicators - from job growth to Medicare Advantage enrollment to private shareholder reports - are provided more frequently than monthly; this bill would hold the Marketplaces and State Medicaid programs to unprecedented standards. To implement this new reporting system, contracts may need to be modified and new staff would need to be hired on an expedited basis, adding millions of dollars in costs to States and the Federal Government, without additional funding from the Congress, for information that is already largely being provided on a monthly basis, consistent with other publicly-funded health care programs. As such, the Administration opposes its passage.

Barack Obama, Statement of Administration Policy: H.R. 3362 - Exchange Information Disclosure Act Online by Gerhard Peters and John T. Woolley, The American Presidency Project https://www.presidency.ucsb.edu/node/304974

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