Nov. 25, 2014

Jonathan Gruber worked hard to help Obama craft his Affordable Care Act (ACA).

Gruber wanted a program that kept insurance companies in place. A private market solution rather than a public one. But he also wanted government to require those companies to cover pre-existing conditions.

He was forceful in his support of the individual mandate. A law that actually forces citizens to make a purchase.

And he rounded the whole thing out with a push for government subsidies. These were needed to help anyone unable to afford the cost of the premiums that they are not legally required to take on.

During the lead up to the passage of the ACA, Gruber was a key player. This according to Steve Rattner, a former member of the Obama administration.

Gruber was widely quoted by the mainstream media in the month’s leading up to the law’s passage. He worked closely with the White House. He was paid nearly $400k in consulting fees. In other words, he was deeply involved.

So it seems reasonable to listen to him when he says that the only way ObamaCare passed was through voter stupidity. And through a law deliberately written to be difficult to understand.

In other words, the “most transparent administration in the history of our country” passed its landmark legislation by making sure it kept you, the average American, in the dark.

If you’re mad as hell, you have every right to be.

“Call it the stupidity of

the American Voter …”

Gruber is an MIT professor. He has a Ph.D. in economics. He worked with the Clintons on the ill-fated Hillary-care plan. And he worked with Romney on designing the Massachusetts healthcare mandate.

It’s no surprise that the Obama administration turned to him for help with ObamaCare. Gruber was tasked with creating computer models. These models predicted how different changes to the ACA would affect the economy, the costs, and ultimately the success of the plan.

What is a surprise is the candor with which this man recently spoke about the process of getting ObamaCare passed into law.

In a video of Gruber speaking at the Competitive Enterprise Institute, he makes the statement that the ACA was written in a “tortured” way in order to make it pass.

He stated that the writers of the law went to great lengths to make sure the Congressional Budget Office did not call the mandate a tax. “If CBO scored the mandate as taxes, the bill dies,” said Gruber.

If they’d been honest about the tax implications of the mandate, the American public would never have supported the bill. (Remember the Supreme Court decided the mandate is a tax … it was the only legal way to force American citizens to purchase something.)

In other words, lawmakers lied to pass the bill.

Gruber also said that if Congress had outright explained that the bill forces healthy people to pay more in premiums—which it does—the law never would have passed. Instead they buried that fact in confusing language.

In other words, lawmakers lied to pass the bill.

Gruber also said that the lack of political transparency was a huge advantage in passing the bill. “Call it the stupidity of the American voter, or whatever,” he said.

Congress wrote the bill in a way that deliberately downplayed key hot points … that covered up things the American voters would have objected to outright.

Lawmakers lied to pass the bill.

These Lies Have Hurt Our Nation

Our Congress wrote a tortured bill and rammed it through. They had to use a procedural loophole to do it.

And now we are all going to pay the price.

We’ll face doctor shortages. A broken Medicare system. Higher health insurance premiums.

Businesses are cutting back on staff. They’re reducing employee hours. Even public sector employers are cutting hours. They’re reclassifying employees as part time so they can avoid paying benefits. This is a double-blow to families who have to foot the bill for their own insurance while getting by on less income.

When the employer mandate goes into effect, it will siphon another $150 billion out of the economy. That will further slow business expansion, job growth, and consumer spending.

This bill—passed through subterfuge and deception—hurts your health and your wallet.

It’s All About Planning

The ObamaCare law makes both healthcare and the economy more unpredictable than ever. That means that at any moment, a shift in the landscape could upend your world financially.

There are two things you can do to protect yourself.

A Second Income Stream: The first is to set up a second income stream. Something that brings in passive income is ideal, but anything you can dedicate a few hours a week to that brings in an extra chunk of cash will add to your financial security.

Choosing Your Insurance Plan: I recommend a plan with a high deductible, with manageable monthly premiums, and that pays 100% of costs after your deductible is met. Then you’ll know exactly what your maximum healthcare costs could be in a year. Put that amount in savings and you’ll be set to deal with whatever comes your way … at least financially.

If you opt for a lower-deductible plan with a co-pay after the deductible, you’re inviting trouble. If you have a major medical event, you could end up owing hospitals and doctors tens of thousands of dollars that you weren’t prepared to spend.

Take these steps now to insulate yourself financially from this farce of a law. Your bank account and your health will be better for it.