WASHINGTON, DC – U.S. Senator Pat Roberts called for hearings on Obamacare following multiple reports of rising health insurance premiums increasing the cost of health care for consumers.

 Senator Roberts joined Senator Chuck Grassley (R-IA), Ranking Member on the Senate Committee on Finance and other Committee Republicans in sending a letter to Senator Max Baucus (D-MT), Chairman of the Senate Finance Committee requesting hearings to examine Obamacare. The following is the text of the letter, dated September 17, 2010:

“We write to request that the Senate Committee on Finance hold a hearing before the next recess on the topic of the new health reform law’s effects on health insurance premiums for individuals, families and employers.

“As you know, we are now beginning to see how some of the changes enacted in the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (PPACA) will affect health insurance premiums. In fact, a recent article in the Wall Street Journal reported that some health plans will be raising premiums between 1 and 9 percent in the next plan year as a direct result of changes in the health reform law.  Others, including Secretary Sebelius, have predicted much lower increases. A public hearing would provide an opportunity to sort through these different estimates and review the changes affecting premiums.

“Specifically, a productive hearing on this topic requires testimony from Jay Angoff, Director of the Office of Consumer Information and Insurance Oversight, and Richard Foster, Chief Actuary at the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services.  Mr. Angoff should be made available to provide information about trends in the current health insurance marketplace while Mr. Foster should discuss some of the underlying issues and cost drivers behind health care inflation.   

“The expansion of health insurance coverage as a result of the new law is partly based on the $500 billion in taxpayer funded subsidies to help people buy health insurance. Since these subsidies are calculated as a percentage of premiums and are delivered in the form of tax credits, the Senate Committee on Finance has an obligation to examine the overall cost, and government obligation, related to health insurance premiums.

“As members of the Committee, we strongly encourage you to hold this hearing before the next recess.  The cost of health insurance has been an important part of the health reform debate since it began and we should use all the resources available, including a public hearing, to review the current facts and inform our constituents.”

 Senator Roberts is a member of the Senate Committee on Finance and the Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee. During the debate on Obamacare, Roberts warned premiums would rise as a result of the legislation.
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