Alexander: Obamacare Costs to Tennessee Patients, Taxpayers “Nothing Like Tennesseans Were Promised”

KNOXVILLE, Oct. 14- U.S. Sen. Lamar Alexander (R-Tenn.) made the following statement on analysis by the Senate Budget Committee released today showing Obamacare will likely increase the federal deficit by approximately $131 billion by 2024:

“Democrats in Congress and President Obama have made a lot of promises about what Obamacare would do to lower patients’ costs and to lower the cost of health care to taxpayers, but the reality is nothing like Tennesseans were promised. Not only are Obamacare premiums going to increase for some Tennesseans by a whopping 14 percent next year, today’s Budget committee report says that Obamacare is driving up the debt our children and grandchildren will owe by $131 billion.”

Alexander added: “Instead of insulting the intelligence of Tennesseans by saying this law is working, this administration should admit Obamacare is a failure and start working with Republicans to repair the damage it has done—putting in place policies that move us step by step toward more freedom, more choices, and lower costs.”

Republican staff on the Senate Budget Committee based their report today on the Congressional Budget Office (CBO)’s most recent analysis on the impact of Obamacare from 2012. The committee then factored in the numerous changes to the law since then, including: “a botched rollout of the insurance exchanges; unilateral changes made by the administration to exempt certain groups from complying with key aspects of the law; technical adjustments to CBO’s baseline projections for federal health spending; updated economic forecasts; a better understanding of the labor market effects of the legislation; and a new 10-year budget window.”

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For access to this release and Ranking Member Alexander’s other statements, click here.