Ah, those compassionate conservatives and their culture of life. A memo marked "confidential" from Dick Armey's FreedomWorks, obtained by Politico and ThinkProgress tells GOP lawmakers to "improve" the law "so long as the improvements don't significantly increase its support." ThinkProgress:
Similarly, the group warns the GOP against collaborating with health care groups to eliminate that IPAB board or other provisions "unless the affected industries endorse full repeal." A more effective strategy is to "Highlight the special interest deals and corrupt bargains. Scrutinize the hundreds of waivers and thousands of pages of regulations issuing from HHS. Publicize the premium cost increases and coverage losses. Keep Dr. Berwick talking," the memo says.Republicans should reject some of the most popular elements of reform and offer legislation that embraces the existing individual market, Armey writes. He dismisses reforms like "the unnecessary small-business tax credits" and describes caps on annual limits, the ban on lifetime limits, the adult children coverage provision, and the caps on insurance company profits as "cost insurance mandates." The memo argues that "[b]anning preex condition clauses is counterproductive, because it raises premiums and causes coverage to be dropped." "It's also unnecessary because federal and state laws already offer significant protections," it says, ignoring the fact that more than 40 states and the District of Columbia don't have laws protecting individuals with pre-existing conditions from being denied coverage.
Republicans should reject some of the most popular elements of reform and offer legislation that embraces the existing individual market. So that would be best agenda for them.
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