Response to Delay of Employer Mandate

Obamacare: Going, Going, But Not Gone

Off agin,  on agin,

Gone agin, Finnigan
 

Strickland W. Gillilan (1869-1954), American poet and humorist, in Finnigan to Flanigan
 

The Obamacare  announcement  to delay implementation of an  employment mandate penalizing businesses with 50 more employees from being socked with a $2000 penalty per employee if workers are not offered comprehensive government endorsed health plans  - is the latest chapter in the Obamacare saga.
 

All of the major news organizations and other media outlets have weighed on the import of this news.  The best places to read about it are the news roundup by Kaiser Health News and the various commentaries in Real Clear Politics.
 

The business community, conservatives, and Republicans are gleeful.  Obama supporters, liberals, and Democrats are doleful.   Both know this decision was made with the November 2014 elections in mind, to neutralize criticisms of Obamacare delays, missteps,  and impacts on the economy.   

Continuing complaints from business about Obamacare causing them to lay off workers and to postpone hiring  prompted the decision,  which was announced at the start of the long July 4 weekend to minimize its negative political effects.  

Obamacare spokespersons,  Valerie Jarrett, Peter Orzag and others,  say the decision is a good thing,  giving the administration time to simplify an overly complex process of implementation, "to get it right."  

The response on the Republican side of the aisle is “See, I told you so,” while, in next breath, calling for repeal.
 

It is a field day for the apoplectic and apocalyptic metaphor mongers, who are now making frequent comments about the approaching “train wreck”, “Titanic in the Tank,” and "the throwing" of the American economy, seniors, small businesses,  and the health care industry “under the bus,”  o“wheels coming off th bus, ” "Lame ducks don't  swim upstream," or "Lame ducks can quack, but they can's quake."
 

Whether this delay will buy  sufficient time for compromises,  readjustments,  and  simplifications, remains doubtful, but one thing is certain: It will prolong the business and healthcare  uncertainties for  year without resolving them.

Tweet:  Delaying for 1 year employer mandate requiring businesses with 50 or more employees to insure them raises more questions than answers.