Hatch Introduces Legislation Repealing Portions of Health Law
By Mark Eddington
mainstreetbusinessjournal.com
WASHINGTON – U.S. Senator Orrin Hatch (R-Utah) introduced two pieces of legislation today striking at the heart of the $2.5 trillion health care law. The first, the American Liberty Restoration Act (S. 3502), would repeal the individual mandate that Hatch has repeatedly called unconstitutional and has prompted lawsuits by over 20 states. The second, the American Job Protection Act (S.3501), would repeal the job-killing employer mandate that Hatch says would force more layoffs and increase taxes on businesses at a time of near 10 percent unemployment.
“It’s an indisputable fact that this $2.5 trillion health care law is bad for our nation. Its central tenets threaten our basic liberty and our ability to recover from this severe economic downturn. By repealing both the unconstitutional individual mandate and the job-killing employer mandate, the most egregious elements of this devastating health law will be eliminated. This would be a huge leap in the right direction for hard-working families and small businesses.”
REPEALING THE UNCONSTITUTIONAL INDIVIDUAL MANDATE WITH THE AMERICAN LIBERTY RESTORATION ACT (S. 3502):
The American Liberty Restoration Act would strike provisions in the health law requiring individuals to purchase health insurance. Never before has the federal government forced the American people to purchase something they may not want.
“Congress overstepped its authority by telling Americans that they have to buy health insurance or else,” Hatch said. “The Constitution empowers Congress to regulate interstate commerce, but does not tell Americans what they must buy. It’s time to repeal this unconstitutional Washington mandate that encroaches on the principle of federalism and Utahns’ personal liberty.”
Hatch was the first member of Congress to challenge the constitutionality of the individual mandate, requiring Americans to purchase health insurance. Utah was in the original group of 13 states that filed the first lawsuit minutes after it was signed into law by President Obama. The number of states fighting the law has grown to 20, and in May, the National Federation of Independent Business (NFIB), the nation’s largest organization representing small businesses, joined on to the lawsuit filed in Florida.
REPEALING THE JOB-KILLING EMPLOYER MANDATE WITH THE AMERICAN JOB PROTECTION ACT (S. 3501):
The American Job Protection Act would strike those provisions in the health law forcing employers to provide health insurance for their employees or face a massive tax increase that the nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office (CBO) found would hit employers with $52 billion in new taxes. Almost every group representing employers, including the NFIB, the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, and the National Association of Manufacturers (NAM), opposes the employer mandate.
“The employer mandate would force businesses to let people go or raise the cost of doing business to such an extent that they don’t start hiring. This doesn’t make any sense at any time, but especially when our nation’s unemployment rate remains stuck around ten percent,” concluded Hatch. “Let’s repeal this job-killing provision so businesses can back in the business of hiring.”
The nation’s job creators have already felt the negative impact of the $2.5 trillion health law. A long list of businesses have announced that they would be forced to cut their workforce as a direct result of the law, including John Deere, Caterpillar, Medtronic, Verizon and even some ski resorts, among others.
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