Who’s Kidding Whom on Misinformation?
The Hill reports that Secretary Sebelius, in a speech yesterday to young people, asked them to keep “pushing back on the lies and the mistruths” about Obamacare. That’s a curious statement to make, given the Secretary’s prior comments:
- Secretary Sebelius recently received Three Pinocchios from the Washington Post for making “outrageous” assertions about the House-passed budget: “She decided to present a highly inflammable comment as a statement of fact…She should be ashamed.”
- Last October the Secretary was forced to apologize for her assertion in a speech to the AARP that seniors will have “more Medicare Advantage plans to choose from,” after Republicans pointed out that “[her] speech dedicated to setting the record straight and criticizing those concerned about the future of the MA program contains substantial misinformation and omissions.”
- In March, Secretary Sebelius stated before Congress – and has repeated elsewhere – that the health care law will BOTH reduce the deficit AND extend the life of the Medicare trust fund. That statement directly contradicts President Obama himself, who in an interview with Fox News last year admitted that “You can’t say that you are saving on Medicare and then spending the money twice.”
- At another March hearing, Secretary Sebelius claimed that employers will keep offering coverage because the law includes a “ban on large employers even considering Exchanges for at least the first five years.” However, there is NOTHING in the statute stopping employers from dumping their coverage and letting their workers migrate to the Exchange as individuals.
- Late last month, a Politico op-ed by the Secretary stated that “contrary to critics’ contentions, the…work [of Obamacare’s Independent Payment Advisory Board] will be transparent, independent, and accountable to Congress and the President.” That’s an interesting assertion, seeing as how the statute includes NO requirement for public comment prior to IPAB issuing its recommendations. Specifically, 42 USC 1395kkk(i)(1), as created by the law, indicates that IPAB “may hold such hearings…take such testimony, and receive such evidence as the Board considers advisable.” The statutory language provides about as firm a commitment to transparency as the President’s promise to televise all health care negotiations on C-SPAN.
As much as they continue to make allegations regarding “misinformation,” it’s worth reminding Democrats that they are allowed to have their own opinions regarding Obamacare, but they are NOT entitled to their own facts.