What’s Next? Incompetence Besieges Pomeroy Healthcare Law from Day One

March 24, 2010

Promised Benefits for Children Missing from Health Bill, Question Remains: Did Pomeroy Even Read It?

Earl Pomeroy’s government takeover of healthcare has only been law for a day and already it’s clear that North Dakota families are getting more than they bargained for. According to a report by the Associated Press, one of the key promises made by Democrats on their march toward government-run healthcare – to cover children with pre-existing conditions – isn’t actually in the 2,700-page bill. This glaring incompetence can only lead voters to wonder: Did Earl Pomeroy really have any idea what he approved when he willingly rubber-stamped his party’s trillion-dollar healthcare bill?

“Hours after President Barack Obama signed historic health care legislation, a potential problem emerged. Administration officials are now scrambling to fix a gap in highly touted benefits for children.

“Obama made better coverage for children a centerpiece of his health care remake, but it turns out the letter of the law provided a less-than-complete guarantee that kids with health problems would not be shut out of coverage.

“Under the new law, insurance companies still would be able to refuse new coverage to children because of a pre-existing medical problem, said Karen Lightfoot, spokeswoman for the House Energy and Commerce Committee, one of the main congressional panels that wrote the bill Obama signed into law Tuesday.” (Ricardo Alonso-Zaldivar, “Gap in Health Care Law’s Protection for Children,” Associated Press, 3/24/10)

“Just one day after his government healthcare takeover was signed into law, it’s already clear that Democrat rubber-stamp Earl Pomeroy was walking the party line when he signed off on a 2,700-page bill without even knowing what was in it,” said NRCC Communications Director Ken Spain. “After touting coverage for children as a reason to pass their runaway healthcare agenda, Democrats are just now finding out that this key provision isn’t actually in the bill. North Dakota families are now left wondering how much more taxpayer money will be wasted on Washington’s incompetence. Pomeroy is probably searching for excuses, but he should be searching for a new job because voters aren’t likely to forget this ineptitude on Election Day.”

As Earl Pomeroy and his fellow Democrats begin to chalk up the broken promises from day one, they should be aware: Voters are counting.

By Code Red