Smith Bill to Help Americans Hurt by Obamacare Co-Op Failures Passes House

Smith: “This is a simple bill rooted in fairness.”
Sep 27, 2016 Issues: Health Care, Ways & Means

Today, the U.S. House of Representatives passed Congressman Adrian Smith’s (R-NE) bill, the Co-Op Consumer Protection Act, to provide relief from Obamacare penalties to taxpayers who lost their insurance coverage due to the failures of the Consumer Operated and Oriented Plans (co-ops) created under the President’s health care law.

Congressman Smith’s opening statement on the House floor on his bill, the Co-Op Consumer Protection Act.

Congressman Smith’s closing comments on his bill.

“This is a simple bill rooted in fairness,” Smith said.  “Americans who lost their health insurance through no fault of their own deserve certainty rather than having to take their chances within the federal bureaucracy to avoid paying a tax penalty.  These consumers deserve time and flexibility to find a plan which works for their unique circumstances, especially when they face even fewer coverage options and possibly having to start over on their deductibles. 

“It is absurd for the government to penalize consumers who tried to comply with the law but could not do so due to the law’s own failures.  Though the President continues to advocate for the individual mandate at all costs, no matter how much it hurts law-abiding citizens seeking to do the right thing, Americans should not be forced to continue to shoulder these unnecessary hardships.”

Background:

More than $2 billion, largely in the form of low-interest startup and solvency loans, was distributed to approved co-ops under the Affordable Care Act.  

CoOportunity Health, which sold plans covering 120,000 Nebraskans and Iowans in 2014, was the first co-op to close.  Now, 17 of the 23 original co-ops, which received more than $1.7 billion, have closed or are in the process of closing, with the remaining six also struggling to remain solvent.  

H.R. 954 exempts taxpayers from the individual mandate for the remaining months within the calendar year in which their co-op insurance plan was cancelled.  The bill applies retroactively to individuals who lost coverage after December 31, 2013, including those who lost plans sold by CoOportunity Health in Nebraska and Iowa.  The Ways and Means Committee, on which Smith serves, is the committee of jurisdiction for H.R. 954.  

Click here to read Smith’s op-ed in the Wall Street Journal, “ObamaCare’s Cascading Co-Op Failures,” from November 2, 2015.