HELP: Separating HHS mandate from rest of Obamacare

[fnr]

I think the most promising path forward in resolving the issues over health insurance is to separate the HHS mandate on contraception, sterilization, and abortifacients from the rest of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (PPACA) – a.k.a. Obamacare.

In the Supreme Court, the government’s brief in the Sebelius v. Hobby Lobby case, the first thing they start with is the following:
"First, group health plans must cover items or services that have an “A” or “B” rating from the U.S. Preventive Services Task Force (Task Force). 42 U.S.C. 300gg-13(a)(1) (Supp. V 2011). The Task Force is composed of independent health-care professionals who “review the scientific evidence related to the effectiveness, appropriateness, and cost-effectiveness of clinical preventive services for the purpose of developing recommendations for the health care community.”
The report of the Task Force is online at this link. Oddly, the full report cannot be downloaded for free, only read online. A summary report of the Task Force is online here.

I don’t have time to read the report, but I would like to ask help in finding the language in which contraception, sterilization, and abortifacients are defined as “clinical preventive services.” That, to me, is where the whole HHS mandate hangs – the normative statement that contraception is a preventive service.

This is the policy issue on which the whole thing hinges: is pregnancy a “health outcome” to be prevented?

 

[kmcarl56]

Remember that in this country, church and state are separated, however based upon the teachings of the Bible. Nevertheless, lawyers and prosecutors have often turned the laws of the Constitution and Bill of Rights into a battleground between Government vs Bible.

The facts about Obamacare can be found here:
obamacarefacts.com/obamacare-facts.php

To remove statutes about contraception and abortion will take private and individual efforts by organizations with the power to change law. That is where you use your right to speak freely to defend your beliefs. Support organizations that oppose these things. Write to your senators and congressmen/women to oppose these things. Get people to sign petitions to give to government officials who are defending the “right to choose” laws, and those who approve of giving contraception to teens in our schools.

There are ways to fight this issue, but let’s not take away all of the other benefits for the health of American people for the sake of one issue, which is already law. Obamacare is not to blame, it is the laws that Obamacare must abide that are to blame. Fight them!

Here is a link to get involved with Pro-Life America:
prolifeamerica.com/Right-to-life_Pro-Life_Organizations.cfm

Here is an article about how the Church is fighting contraception:
catholicnewsagency.com/news/forty-three-catholic-organizations-file-lawsuits-against-hhs-mandate/

We must do what is right for all, but we must do it the right way. America needs affordable healthcare for all. America needs to rid this country of immoral and sinful activities like abortion and contraception.

 

[Back2Church]

The mandate isn’t going to last. Check out this page, it has all the info on the battle against the HHS mandate.

http://www.becketfund.org/hhsinformationcentral/

All the cases were put on hold while the final version of the mandate was being written. Now that it’s out, all the cases will start proceeding again. The Hobby Lobby case was the first to get going again after this final version was released, and they won their injunction.

The 10th appellate judges took an opinion vote recently and 3 out of 5 of them agreed this mandate was in violation of the freedom of religion act. The general consensus among all the commentary I’ve read predicts that this mandate will end up being thrown out.

 

[Viki63]

We must do what is right for all, but we must do it the right way. America needs affordable healthcare for all. America needs to rid this country of immoral and sinful activities like abortion and contraception.

I like your thinking. I too would like to see abortion and contraception eliminated, or if people want it let them buy it.
But we also need affordable healthcare for everyone, NOT insurance. Insurance never saved anyone’s life, healthcare does.
If Christian groups such as MediShare can work together to share their financial resources to pay medical bills, why can’t the rest of the country? Why do we need hundreds of middlemen raking profits off the top?
The taxes we pay are enough to provide healthcare for everyone, if the insurance companies just got their fingers out of the loot.

 

[_Abyssinia]

The original mandate came when HHS fully adopted the recommendations of the Institute of Medicine (IOM) report “Clinical Preventive Services for Women: Closing the Gaps.” This report claimed that American women were suffering a crisis of “unintended pregnancy,” a crisis that could be resolved most effectively by requiring employers to provide women, free of charge, the “full range of Food and Drug Administration-approved contraceptive methods, sterilization procedures, and patient education and counseling for women with reproductive capacity.” 1

thepublicdiscourse.com/2013/02/7847

See Recommendation 5.5 from the Institute of Medicine

There are major problems with the ACA aside from the HHS mandate, especially from a pro life perspective, they are the Independent Payment Advisory Board, which consists of unelected people whose decisions could result in people not being able to have medical treatment and this Board’s decisions can override a President or Congress, as the following article says

lifenews.com/2013/05/30/independent-payment-advisory-boards-death-panels-should-not-be-implemented

And the following article explains how 111,500 abortions may be funded through the exchanges

lifenews.com/2013/09/26/obamacare-state-exchanges-will-fund-tens-of-thousands-of-abortions-with-your-money

 

[mikekle]

It seems to me that prosecutors only bring up the separation between church and state if and only when it backs up what they are trying to prove, but should the defense bring it up, the prosecution will shoot it down. so both sides only make use of it when it suits their particular need.

Im not clear on the Obamacare health plan, but something does need to change in this country regarding health insurance and insurance companies. The next thing Obama needs to tackle is car insurance, I have only had one accident in my life, 25 years ago, since then, nothing, not even a speeding ticket, yet I still have to flush $600/ year down the toilet to my car insurance company. I feel awful everytime I pay this bill!!! I think the fact it is a law (in most states) everyone must buy car insurance is unjust. So Obamacare will not be the only thing people are FORCED to buy into.

 

[Corki]

It seems to me that prosecutors only bring up the separation between church and state if and only when it backs up what they are trying to prove, but should the defense bring it up, the prosecution will shoot it down. so both sides only make use of it when it suits their particular need.

Im not clear on the Obamacare health plan, but something does need to change in this country regarding health insurance and insurance companies. The next thing Obama needs to tackle is car insurance, I have only had one accident in my life, 25 years ago, since then, nothing, not even a speeding ticket, yet I still have to flush $600/ year down the toilet to my car insurance company. I feel awful everytime I pay this bill!!! I think the fact it is a law (in most states) everyone must buy car insurance is unjust. So Obamacare will not be the only thing people are FORCED to buy into.

That’s not an exact analogy. You are only “forced” to buy car insurance IF you own the vehicle and want it to be registered for on-road use. But there are alternatives. If you don’t want to buy the insurance, you can work from home, take the bus or borrow your neighbor’s car when you need to go to the store. Not only that but you can decide to get full coverage or just liability. You can decide coverage levels and deductibles. There are lots of options.

With the ACA, everyone is forced to get the coverage or pay a fine. There are no alternatives and no options.

 

[Irish6352]

I have determined that abortion coverage and contraception coverage will never be removed from any obama -named law. It was intended from the beginning, (remember Sandra Fluck)
Of Georgetown University, no less.
The democrats insist on rebranding abortion and contraception as “woman’s health”.
Anyone who thinks there is the remotest possibility this will be removed is delusional.
This is what we get when we allow the federal government to interfere in our lives. You don’t get something for nothing. Under the guise of womens health, how long will it be before we are told how many children we are allowed, using new vocabulary–reproductive health.

 

[mikekle]

I have determined that abortion coverage and contraception coverage will never be removed from any obama -named law. It was intended from the beginning, (remember Sandra Fluck)
Of Georgetown University, no less.
The democrats insist on rebranding abortion and contraception as “woman’s health”.
Anyone who thinks there is the remotest possibility this will be removed is delusional.
This is what we get when we allow the federal government to interfere in our lives. You don’t get something for nothing. Under the guise of womens health, how long will it be before we are told how many children we are allowed, using new vocabulary–reproductive health.

This is the difference between people today and people that lived around the time of the nations founding, back then, people would band together, and show up with torches and pitch forks in hand at the front door of those they felt were responsible for some unjust law or tax, and literally stop it right there, but today, people are not willing to do such things and are not as patriotic. When they hear of unjust laws, taxes, etc. All they can think to do is vote the ones they see as responsible out of office next November LOL. Some may protest and write letters, but this rarely gets anywhere, and our leaders know this.

I like to use the Boston Tea party event in comparison to things taking place today, If such a thing happened today, those involved would be arrested and labeled domestic terrorists, even though their intent was truly patriotic!

It is sad what has become of the nation.

 

[Irish6352]

I’m sure we’re talking about different issues–I really don’t want obama or anyone other than myself to pay my car insurance or health insurance. Let the “slippery slope” begin, and consequences realized for America. Pray, and hope.

 

[mikekle]

I’m sure we’re talking about different issues–I really don’t want obama or anyone other than myself to pay my car insurance or health insurance. Let the “slippery slope” begin, and consequences realized for America. Pray, and hope.

Car insurance and they way it is done needs to be re-vamped imo, I am 38, and have had to pay my car insurance ever since I was 18 and had my first car of my own. I get sick of paying hundreds of dollars every 6 months for something I never use and get nothing in return for. Im sure many other people feel the same way, all it takes is more people to stand up and demand a change.

I had hope back when ‘pay at the pump’ car insurance was popular, but that will never work, especially with todays high fuel prices. I can think of no other product or service, that is required by law to purchase (if you own a car), which in todays world, in most areas is not a luxury anymore, but a necessity, I could understand this argument back when cars where a luxury to own and many families owned just one, but times have changed. This is definitely benefiting the insurance companies that sell auto insurance!! If people were required by law to purchase your product, that would benefit ANY industry though.