10 Health Insurance Companies Get ObamaCare Waivers --

[kathyet]

10 Health Insurance Companies Get ObamaCare Waivers -- for Their Own Employees
Tuesday, February 22, 2011
By Fred Lucas




sebelius, obama, pelosi

President Barack Obama embraces Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius, left, and House Speaker Nancy Pelosi of Calif. in the East Room of the White House after signing the health care bill into law on March 23, 2010. (AP File Photo/Charles Dharapak)

(CNSNews.com) – The Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) has granted waivers to 10 health insurance companies, including giants such as Cigna and Aetna and divisions of Blue Cross Blue Shield, from the requirements of the new health care law, also known as ObamaCare.

The waivers allow these companies to impose annual limits on the health coverage they provide to their employees. Under Obamacare, companies that do not get special waivers from the administration must phase out their caps on annual health-care benefits between now and 2014 when they must offer limitless annual benefits. The Obama administration began granting waivers to the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act last September.

The health insurance company benefiting most from a special waiver from the Obamacare provision is Cigna Corp., which has 265,000 enrollees on its health plan. HHS approved Cigna a waiver on Sept. 26, 2010, allowing it to cap the health insurance benefits for those 265,000 employees.

(So far, among all entities recieving waivers--not just health insurance companies--the greatest single beneficiary has been the United Federation of Teachers, a union, which won a waiver from lifting the benefit cap for 351,000 enrollees.)

Ironically, shortly after the Republicans won control of the House of Representatives, Cigna CEO David M. Cordani told the Reuters news agency on Nov. 9, 2010 that he opposed the repeal of ObamaCare.

“I don’t think it’s in our society’s best interest to expend energy in repealing the law,â€

[JohnDoe2]

. . . More than 700 one-year waivers -- 733, as of Jan. 26 -- have been granted under the Obama administration. But not all went to companies and labor unions. Some were granted to counties, cities, school districts and other local government entities. And the waivers apply only to the provision of the health-care law regarding annual benefit caps. They do not exempt the employers from complying with the entire health-care law. Four waivers have gone to state governments.

http://www.azcentral.com/news/election/ ... php?id=207

[JohnDoe2]

Such waivers are only good for one year, but applicants may reapply each year until 2014.

http://blogs.sacbee.com/crime/archives/ ... in-sa.html

[kathyet]

No waivers period...not 1 year not 1 minute no one no how. Right there proves this Obama healthcare fiasco needs to struck down.



Kathyet