Brookfield7

All content, of both the original Brookfield7.com and this blog, is written from my point of view and is my opinion. I believe it to be accurate at the time it is written. ~ Kyle Prast, Brookfield resident since 1986

Friday, November 16, 2012

Gov. Walker says he will NOT set up exchanges

This just in, Gov. Scott Walker officially notified the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services "that Wisconsin will not build a state-based health insurance exchange and will defer to the federal Government's insurance exchange."

Yesterday afternoon, talk show host Mark Belling talked about this, that the word was, Wisconsin would be joining with 19 other states opting out of creating their own exchanges.

The Governor's letter restates the dilemma: "No matter which option is chosen, Wisconsin taxpayers will not have meaningful control over the health care policies and services sold to Wisconsin residents. If the state option is chosen; however, Wisconsinites face risk from a federal mandate lacking long-term guaranteed funding."

And if you called the Governor, you are mentioned in the letter: "...after much consideration and outreach with citizens across the state [that's you!], and in the best interest of the taxpayers of Wisconsin, we have determined Wisconsin will not develop a partnership or state-based exchange."

State Senator Leah Vukmir is on Vicki McKenna right now talking about this. I urge you to listen to the podcast when it becomes available: Hour 1, Part 1 11-16-12. Vukmir says there could be more states doing the same, and some Democrat governors have joined in the opt-out. She also mentioned a few mandates we would be spared from.


Illinois, Minnesota, and Michigan are said to be setting up the exchanges, so if you are a mid-west business, where would you rather locate?

In a related issue,  HHS Secretary Kathleen Sibelius just announced she is "granting them [governors] an extension to Dec. 14 on the decision." Hmm, I wonder why she is doing that? I am sure they are hoping to peel off a few of those 20 resistant governors.

The 10th Amendment might be finally getting its day in the sun: "The powers not delegated to the United States by the Constitution, nor prohibited by it to the States, are reserved to the States, respectively, or to the people."

Here is another thought: If a state spends its own taxpayer money to fund their own exchange, aren't we still required to pay our federal taxes, a portion of which go to funding the federal health care exchanges? It's a variation of spreading the wealth around in my opinion. In effect, it would mean states with exchanges are paying twice.

If the 20 states stay united, thus not funding the government mandate, where is the federal government going to get the money to fund their mandate? (Republicans hold the majority in the House, where all funding bills originate.)

I am sure we will know more as time goes on, but at least we have dodged this first bullet. And taking a page from the Democrats, any measure to slow down the process is progress. This push-back could lead to more.


Gov. Scott Walker's letter to Secretary Sebelius
HHS Extends Exchange Deadline a Month 
Analysis: 20 states will run their health-law exchanges 


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Tuesday, November 13, 2012

Gov. Walker, please, no exchange, take backdoor to escape ObamaCare

In the wake of Tuesday's election results, the grim realization that we are not going to be able to escape ObamaCare started to sink in. But Vicki McKenna floated the idea last week that there was a backdoor way to prevent ObamaCare from taking root in Wisconsin--don't set up the state-run exchange.

Also last week, National Review posted an article by the CATO Institute informing us that Obamacare Is Still Vulnerable.  The Obama "administration has asked state officials to decide by Friday, November 16, whether their state will create one of Obamacare's health-insurance 'exchanges.' States also have to decide whether to implement the law's massive expansion of Medicaid. The correct answer to both questions remains a resounding no." (My emphasis)  Unfortunately, we don't have the luxury of time to think about this.

So we need to act fast by contacting Governor Walker and our State Legislators, asking them to NOT set up these ObamaCare health-insurance exchanges. Calling has more impact than email and please be polite. I emailed last night, "I urge you to stand against creating a Wisconsin ObamaCare health insurance exchange. It is our only hope of sparing us from the oppression and expense of ObamaCare. Please stand with all of us who stood by you. Sincerely..." 

Call Governor Walker  (608) 266-1212, if you cannot get through, email: govgeneral@wisconsin.gov and then call later. I called this morning and they said they were getting a lot of calls against creating exchanges.

Look up your legislators here: Assembly   Senate

I also called my State Senator Leah Vukmir (608) 266-2512. Her aid said she is against setting up the exchanges, but call her anyway. Your calls supporting her stance are very important.  Email: Sen.Vukmir@legis.wisconsin.gov

Assembly Representatives: Paul Farrow  (608) 266-5120 Email: Rep.Farrow@legis.wi.gov, Dale Kooyenga   (608) 266-9180  Email: Rep.Kooyenga@legis.wi.gov   Rob Hutton  (Takes office in 2013, but you can share your opinion anyway.) (414) 380-9665 Email: rob@rob-hutton.com

In addition to your calls, 20 Wisconsin Tea Party groups sent an open letter to Governor Scott Walker, urging him to declare "NO!" in regard to creating a Wisconsin Obamacare exchange.

Why not create the exchange? Michael Cannon at CATO writes, "State-created exchanges mean higher taxes, fewer jobs, and less protection of religious freedom. States are better off defaulting to a federal exchange. The Medicaid expansion is likewise too costly and risky a proposition. Republican Governors Association chairman Bob McDonnell (R.,Va.) agrees, and has announced that Virginia will implement neither provision."

The article lists 12 reasons to reject creating ObamaCare exchanges taken from CATO:
1. states are under no obligation to create one.
2. operating an Obamacare exchange would be illegal in 14 states...who enacted either statutes or amendments forbidding state employees to participate in an essential exchange function...
3. each exchange would cost its state an estimated $10 million to $100 million per year, necessitating tax increases.
4. the November 16 deadline is no more real than the "deadlines" for implementing REAL ID, which have been pushed back repeatedly since 2008.
5.  states can always create an exchange later if they choose.
6.  a state-created exchange is not a state-controlled exchange. All exchanges will be controlled by Washington.
7. Congress authorized no funds for federal "fallback" exchanges. So Washington may not be able to impose Exchanges on states at all.
8.  the Obama administration has yet to provide crucial information that states need before they can make an informed decision.
9. creating an exchange sets state officials up to take the blame when Obamacare increases insurance premiums and denies care to the sick...
10. creating an exchange would be assisting in the creation of a "public option" that would drive domestic health-insurance carriers out of business through unfair competition.
11.  Obamacare remains unpopular. The latest Kaiser Family Foundation poll found that only 38 percent of the public supports it.
12.  defaulting to a federal exchange exempts a state's employers from the employer mandate — a tax of $2,000 per worker per year...

"Finally, rejecting an exchange reduces the federal deficit. Obamacare offers its deficit-financed subsidies to private health insurers only through state-created exchanges. If all states declined, federal deficits would fall by roughly $700 billion over ten years."

Exit polls revealed the majority of voters, even including those who voted for President Obama, are against ObamaCare, "Forty-nine percent of voters said they think the 2010 law should be either fully [26%] or partially repealed [23%], compared with 44 percent...[who support] "Those numbers come amid a growing belief that government is overstepping its role: the exit polls found that 53 percent of those surveyed said the government is doing too many things better left to businesses and individuals - a figure that’s risen 10 points since the 2008 election."

So this is our last stand against ObamaCare. Let's take it. Make those calls.

The CATO Institute: Obamacare Is Still Vulnerable
Politico: Exit Polls 2012: Split on Obamacare 
An Open Letter to Governor Scott Walker against creating ObamaCare exchange

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An Open Letter to Governor Scott Walker: No Obamacare Exchange


An Open Letter to Governor Scott Walker

Hand delivered, November 12th, 2012

Governor Walker:

Last January, Wisconsinites cheered when you sent back to the federal government a $38 million Early Innovator Grant that had bound the State of Wisconsin to establish an Obamacare exchange, along with an additional $11 million intended for integration of the state’s Medicaid system into that planned exchange.

We weren’t the only ones.

You earned the respect and gratitude of citizens across the United States and garnered the status of national hero for your principled courage in telling the Federal Department of Health and Human Services that Wisconsin would not move ahead with an exchange that compromised, in numerous respects, our state and its people. It made us want to fight that much harder to get you through the recall debacle and keep you in office.

Moreover, your actions provided valuable impetus to other state governments in standing against federal overreach, protecting their own sovereignty, and continuing to guarantee the liberty of their own citizens. Unquestionably, our nation would be far better off had the states not forgotten these clear duties for so long. Fortunately, with the help of leaders such as yourself, they have started to remember them.

Today, in the struggle against Obamacare, we have reached an even more critical juncture than that of last January. Wisconsin must remain in the vanguard of states declaring “NO!” and moving toward nullification.

The numbers alone demonstrate that there is no good reason to comply. The unfunded liabilities that an Obamacare exchange would force Wisconsin to absorb – estimated between $70 and $100 million dollars per year for our state – along with the costs to business, together quickly cancel out any and all of the gains you have thus far achieved via Act 10 and other economic steps taken over the past two years. The blow to businesses and families would be devastating in an already bleak economy.

Worse still, it would obliterate the constitutional liberties that you, as governor, are sworn to uphold and defend. If the sovereignty of the State of Wisconsin is sacrificed, the personal liberty of every single one of its citizens will likewise disappear. Such an outcome is unthinkable. It must not be permitted.

Wisconsin must stand.

As a significant and highly active portion of your base, we have defended you tirelessly through all of the battles of the last year and a half. We also came to the aid of legislators who stood with you on Act 10. We have done right by you. We now urge you to once again do right by us.

You are unquestionably being pressured by powerful lobbying firms and by the federal government alike as you make this decision. Undoubtedly, you face great temptation to take the path of least resistance. This is the moment of truth. What will you do?

The sovereignty of this state and the personal liberty of every single Wisconsinite is at stake – including the lives of the unborn, on whose behalf you have, to date, always advocated. No other considerations can compare to life and liberty.

As noted, a yes to Obamacare is not an option. We will not accept it. We are therefore waiting for you to issue an unequivocal, “NO!” When you do, we expect all Republican state legislators to stand with you, as will we.

Sincerely, the Undersigned:

Kim Mork Beloit Patriots Beloit, WI
Brian Garrow The Group Appleton, WI
Jayne Gohr Mayville TEA Party Mayville, WI
Joanne Terry Ozaukee Patriots Mequon, WI
Jeff Horn Prairie Patriots Sun Prairie, WI
Georgia Janisch Rock County Voter Education Forum Janesville, WI
Dan Horvatin Rock River Patriots Fort Atkinson, WI
John Meegan Sauk County Tea Party Baraboo, WI
Oriannah Paul Sheboygan Liberty Coalition Sheboygan, WI
Paul Lembrick Southern Wisconsin Alliance of Taxpayers Janesville, WI
Paul Bruno Tea Party Perspective Racine, WI
Charles Brey United in Freedom Beaver Dam, WI
Meg Ellefson Wausau TEA Party Wausau, WI
Kirsten Lombard  The Wisconsin 9/12 Project  Madison, WI
Seth Cowan Wolf River Area Patriots New London, WI
Ed Perkins and John Pierce Fox Valley Initiative  Appleton, WI
James Murphy Green Bay Tea Party Green Bay, WI
Ed Willing Founders Intent Caledonia, WI
Greg Luce La Crosse Tea Party La Crosse, WI
Darin Danelski Lake Country Area Defenders of Liberty Oconomowoc, WI


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