Exchanges in their most basic form are a simple market mechanism allowing consumers to research, understand, and satisfy their health care needs.  However, the Exchanges–as drafted within PPACA and substantiated by the Proposed Rules released in the Federal Register on July 15, 2011–are blunt instruments restricting consumer choice and limiting state flexibility.

The Proposed Rules from the Department of Health and Human Services (the Agency) try to provide the impression of state flexibility, while the Agency retains all important decisions regarding the Exchange and its processes.  The Agency must provide initial approval of any Exchange, thus requiring compliance with standards and guidelines the Agency sets outside of Michigan’s control.  Secondly, the Agency establishes a “significant change” test that removes any discretionary power from the State to make changes as needed.  “Significant changes” include such items as: Exchange governance structure, state laws and regulations and IT systems or functionality.   The Agency gives States discretion regarding the Exchanges but only within the tight approval and operational paradigm laid out by the Agency.  Even Michigan’s best attempts to create a consumer-focused exchange will be thwarted by the Agency leaving Michigan as an administrator of policies formulated two thousand miles away.

Further, AFP objects to Agency attempts to create a centralized claims database.  The aggregation of personal health data carries inherent security and privacy risks.  The Agency also suggests that the use of this data will extend beyond the stated purposes of risk adjustment leaving the door open to “other uses,” creating accountability, security, and transparency issues.

Finally, implementation of a state based healthcare exchange will raise taxes on businesses in Michigan. If a business does not provide “affordable” coverage to an employee, the employee can then purchase insurance through an Exchange and becomes eligible for federal tax subsidies.  The employer is then subject to a $3,000 fine for each employee that’s eligible for the subsidy.  However, because lawmakers didn’t even read the bill before they passed it, only individuals purchasing from a state-created Exchange are eligible for a tax credit; federal Exchanges are not eligible.  Therefore, setting up a state-based Exchange will subject businesses in Michigan to higher taxes.

AFP opposes any attempt by Michigan to create its own Exchange and instead urges the State to reject the Federal government’s attempt to make important decisions on behalf of Michigan and her citizens.

For a thorough explanation of AFP’s position on Exchange regulations, click here.

Sincerely,

Scott Hagerstrom

State Director

Americans for Prosperity – Michigan

Americans for Prosperity (AFP) is a nationwide organization of citizen-leaders committed to advancing every individual’s right to economic freedom and opportunity. AFP believes reducing the size and intrusiveness of government is the best way to promote individual productivity and prosperity for all Americans. AFP educates and engages citizens to support restraining state and federal government growth and returning government to its constitutional limits. AFP is more than 1.8 million activists strong, with activists in all 50 states.  AFP has 31 state chapters and affiliates. More than 85,000 Americans in all 50 states have made a financial contribution to AFP or AFP Foundation. For more information, visit www.americansforprosperity.org Americans for Prosperity does not support or oppose candidates for public office.

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We need your help to encourage our local health care systems to come together with lawmakers and support reforms that will save Michigan drivers around $1 billion each year.

Most drivers are probably unaware of the $145 government-mandated “fee” to fund the Michigan Catastrophic Claims Association (MCCA). However, this hidden tax is one of the primary reasons we have some of the highest average car insurance rates in the nation—and those high rates are a key reason nearly 20 percent of Michigan drivers are uninsured.

Even worse, the hidden MCCA tax will have to increase to more than $1,000 per vehicle unless reforms are made.

Health care systems oppose reform. That’s because they are exploiting the current government mandate allowing for unlimited medical claims to subsidize their bottom line.

LANSING, Mich. – The grassroots free-market group Americans for Prosperity-Michigan today condemned the Senate vote to pass SB 693, which would create a Michigan healthcare exchange. At the same time, AFP-Michigan called Sen. Judy Emmons resolution urging the Attorney General to fight the new federal health care law “a charade.”

“I’ll put it bluntly for those lawmakers who voted in favor of this legislation,” said Scott Hagerstrom. “We view their vote to create a state healthcare exchange as a vote for President Barack Obama’s Washington health care takeover. And, we’ll be educating and mobilizing our members with this in mind.”

Hagerstrom noted that creating a state health care exchange would help build the infrastructure for President Obama’s health care law—at a time when just 38 percent of Americans support the new law and there are credible constitutional challenges. These new government bureaucracies would enforce the law’s regulations that will drive up premiums and distribute billions in taxpayer-funded subsidies.

For Republican lawmakers who voted to create the exchange and then voted for a resolution opposing President Obama’s health care law, Hagerstrom had this to say. “It’s a sham, a charade. And we’re going to expose this resolution for what it is—a thinly veiled attempt to cover up their vote in support of President Obama’s Washington health care takeover. With friends like these, who needs enemies?”

According to Hagerstrom, state healthcare exchanges are just one more way the law is designed to coerce states into compliance. Michigan’s exchange would have to comply with thousands of pages of regulation—including those yet unwritten—established by the Obama Administration. The law also allows the feds to commandeer any exchange that doesn’t comply with federal “guidelines.”

“We are going to hold lawmakers’ feet to the fire on this issue,” concluded Hagerstrom. “House lawmakers would do well to approach this legislation with more caution than their Senate colleagues.”

Americans for Prosperity-Michigan is a statewide organization of 65,000 activists committed to strengthening our constitutional government, establishing fiscal restraint, and giving taxpayers greater control over government. We are dedicated to recruiting, training, educating and motivating grassroots activists to be effective in their own communities.

In principle, conservatives should support health insurance exchanges. They harness the power of free market competition, transparency and value comparison to drive innovation, increase choice, and reduce costs. However, when a health plan’s participation in the exchange is conditioned on page-after-page of federal mandates and restrictions, exchanges can also be used as a tool to expand bureaucratic control. That’s exactly what President Obama and Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius are trying to do with ObamaCare’s exchanges. On July 11, 2011, HHS released the first set of proposed exchange regulations. AFP’s concerns include:

Federal Control of State Exchanges: The President knows the country realizes his plan is a federal health care takeover. So in the first proposed regulations his bureaucrats used language that made it appear they were giving states flexibility to set up their own exchanges. Remember the health care market is far too complex for D.C. to run; they need the states to implement their scheme. Giving the appearance of flexibility is one way to convince states to do it. However, the proposed regulations direct that any “significant change” states want to make will require HHS approval. These changes could be as small as exchange governance structure, state laws or regulations, IT systems or functionality, or the qualified health plan certification process. States will be constantly asking permission to run their own exchanges; not a lot of real flexibility.

Centralized Database Risks Security of Personal Data: The proposed regulations also seek to establish a centralized claims database for the purpose of calculating risk. Insurers would be required to submit patients’ personal claims data to a huge federal database for the purposes of calculating “risk scores” and quality reporting – an enormous privacy concern. Do you want the federal government to have access to information about all of your health care decisions?

No Hint of Qualified Plans: “If you like your plan, you can keep it,” the President constantly promised during the health care debate. One of the more important elements of an exchange is which insurance plans will be allowed to participate. What plans qualify? This first regulation is entirely silent on what a qualified plan will look like. Care providers, insurers and patients are still waiting to learn if the President will allow us to keep the health care we have and like.

Short Timetable Threatens Federal Takeover: Maybe the worst aspect of these rules is the incredibly short time frame it gives states to get their exchanges up and running. States must receive “approval or conditional approval” from HHS by January 1, 2013 in order to avoid the federal government taking over the state’s exchange. However, due to various HHS review deadlines, states will probably need to have their plans submitted for federal signoff by July, 2012. With HHS due to release several more regulations before the states will have a clear picture of what the exchanges will need to look like to get HHS approval, states will likely only have a few months between when the final regulations are issued and when their plans are due.

LANSING, Mich. – Americans for Prosperity-Michigan today pledged its support for House Bill 4936, which would reform Michigan no-fault auto insurance, ensuring the long-term sustainability of the system. The taxpayer group called the government-mandated fee to fund the Michigan Catastrophic Claims Association (MCCA) a hidden tax on Michigan drivers—a tax that will increase substantially within a few years. AFP-Michigan has called on its 65,000-plus members to contact their legislator in support of HB 4936.

• To send a message to your representative, click here

“With more than $60 billion in future unfunded liabilities, Michigan’s no-fault auto insurance system is on a collision course with financial ruin,” said Scott Hagerstrom, state director of Americans for Prosperity-Michigan. “Left unchanged, the system will not only empty our wallets, it will also threaten care for crash victims.”

Hagerstrom noted that the MCCA fee, which has been assessed on Michigan drivers as part of their auto insurance premium since the inception of the system, has risen from $5.60 in 2000 to $145 per vehicle. According to testimony from industry experts, if the current upward trend continues, the MCCA assessment will have to rise ten-fold.

“The MCCA fee is a hidden tax on Michigan drivers that will skyrocket within just a few years, bypassing legislative or voter approval,” said Hagerstrom. “It is time to enact reforms that will ensure the sustainability and affordability of our no-fault system.”

AFP-Michigan said it also plans to educate its membership on how large health care systems are fighting the change, because they stand to benefit from the government health insurance mandate. From everything from X-rays to MRIs, on average, health care systems charge Michigan drivers four times more for claims, according to a study commissioned by the Michigan Chamber of Commerce. Meanwhile, auto premiums—along with the number of uninsured Michigan drivers—continues to climb.

“It’s a perfect storm of hidden taxes, government mandates, and unfunded liabilities,” said Hagerstrom. “Lawmakers need to pass common sense reforms that will steer us toward calmer seas.”

Americans for Prosperity-Michigan is a statewide organization of 65,000 activists committed to strengthening our constitutional government, establishing fiscal restraint, and giving taxpayers greater control over government. We are dedicated to recruiting, training, educating and motivating grassroots activists to be effective in their own communities.

According to the woman, a mob of Occupy protestors pushed and shoved her as she exited the Americans for Prosperity Defending the American Dream Summit—causing her to fall down the concrete stairs in front of the Convention Center.

“I couldn’t even see the steps,” the woman said. As the mob pressed against her, she fell down the stairs, sustaining injuries to her head, her hand, and her leg. “The next thing I knew I was being pushed and I fell down.”

The video footage was captured by ConservARTive.com, click here.

The Michigan woman was among 130 Americans for Prosperity-Michigan members who traveled 11 hours by bus to attend the Defending the American Dream Summit in Washington, DC.

Americans for Prosperity-Michigan is a statewide organization of 65,000 activists committed to strengthening our constitutional government, establishing fiscal restraint, and giving taxpayers greater control over government. We are dedicated to recruiting, training, educating and motivating grassroots activists to be effective in their own communities.

State Sen. Mike Kowall voted against the proposed Detroit-Canada bridge in committee

LANSING, Mich. – Americans for Prosperity-Michigan applauded today’s Senate Economic Development Committee vote against the Detroit-Canada government bridge, calling it “an important victory for taxpayers.” However, the group warned, Michigan taxpayers must remain vigilant because bridge proponents will likely seek another route to passage for the proposal.

“We applaud the lawmakers on the committee who had the backbone to stand up for taxpayers even under tremendous pressure to support bigger government,” said Scott Hagerstrom, AFP-Michigan state director. “This vote is an important victory for taxpayers.”

Those lawmakers who voted against the proposal were: Sen. Mike Kowall (R-White Lake Township), Sen. Goeff Hansen (R-Hart) and Sen. Mike Nofs (R-Battle Creek). Lawmakers who supported the proposal were: Sen. Judy Emmons (R-Sheridan) and Sen. Dave Hildenbrand (R-Lowell). Both Democrats on the committee, Sen. Tupac Hunter (Detroit) and Sen. Virgil Smith (Detroit), passed on the vote.

“Unfortunately, the forces of big government will continue to push this proposal,” said Hagerstrom. “It’s like the bad guy in a horror movie—it just refuses to die. We’re calling on Gov. Snyder to respect the legislative process and turn his attention to issues that will bring genuine prosperity to our state.”

The vote comes on the heels of an AFP-Michigan poll that showed nearly half (49 percent) of Michigan voters oppose a new Detroit-Canada bridge, while just 31 percent of respondents said they supported the proposed bridge project. Voters were more than twice as likely to “strongly oppose” the bridge than they were to “strongly support” the bridge (36 percent to 16 percent), with the total number of voters who supported the bridge lower than those most fervently against it.

The full poll results can be found online at www.MichiganAFP.com. For more information about AFP-Michigan’s position on the New International Trade Crossing, visit www.DetroitBridgeInfo.com

Americans for Prosperity-Michigan is a statewide organization of 65,000 activists committed to strengthening our constitutional government, establishing fiscal restraint, and giving taxpayers greater control over government. We are dedicated to recruiting, training, educating and motivating grassroots activists to be effective in their own communities.

http://bit.ly/o2i4gv

A poll commissioned by a group aligned with the owners of the Ambassador Bridge and released this morning found strong opposition to the proposed new, government-owned crossing between Detroit and Windsor.

Forty-nine percent of those polled opposed the span, 36% strongly, according to pollster Kelly Anne Conway, compared to 31% who supported the idea (16% strongly).

The poll was conducted by the polling company, inc./WomanTrend for Americans for Prosperity Michigan, a conservative activist organization which has conducted a vigorous marketing campaign opposing the new bridge as an alleged government boondoggle.

Here is the question posed by the polling firm: “There is currently a debate happening in the Michigan legislature regarding the building of a new bridge near Detroit that would provide an additional connection between Michigan and Canada. The new bridge would be funded, built and managed by the Michigan and Canadian governments. Do you support or oppose this proposal?”

Bills before the legislature to allow the bridge project to move forward aim to protect Michigan taxpayers from any financial obligation.

AFP Michigan Director Scott Hagerstrom said the polling results indicate that Gov. Rick Snyder and lawmakers who support the new bridge are at odds with public opinion.

Pollster Kelly Anne Conway said the bridge question in her poll – unlike other, recent attempts to gauge support for the project — was posed in a neutral way, aimed at eliciting the most accurate measure of voter sentiment. Respondents were not offered any of the arguments for or against the idea, she said.

Conway said opposition to the new bridge is relatively uniform across regions of the state, age groups and political leanings. Self-identified independents (56%) and conservatives (52%) were most likely to oppose the project. But a plurality of Democrats (47%) and liberals (49%) were also opposed, she said.

The telephone survey of 600 registered voters was conducted Oct. 14-16. It has a margin of error of plus or minus four percentage points.