Politics and Money

[lesgetrich]

Nice piece - totally out of context ...

In an interview with POLITICO, Ta emphasized that “employees are not dissatisfied with the Affordable Care Act” and that some younger staffers have seen their premiums fall. But, he noted, congressional aides are treated differently now than other federal employees, and he would like to be able to offer the best health insurance option available to his employees — even if that means some of them are covered under the old system and others jump into the exchanges.

This is a special situation forced on the Congress by Republicans who argued that Congress should be subject to the ACA. This was totally contrary to the intent of the law which was to not affect people who got coverage from their employer. Congressional staffers were getting coverage from their employer - i.e. the US Government - and yes, many employer group plans offer better coverage and better subsidies than the ACA. Because this change was forced at the last minute, Congress couldn't adequately research the effect on their staffs. There are simple fixes that can be applied to this situation without affecting the rest of the ACA. If you really want to see it fixed - write your GOP congressmen.