Boren promotes waiver fairness

March 10, 2011

Last Friday the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services announced the approval of another 126 waivers of various requirements included in the health care law, bringing the total number of waivers to well over 1,000. A full list of waivers is available here. Chris Jacobs of the Republican Policy Committee notes that the waivers approved by the Obama Administration now cover more than 2.6 million individuals, which raises two important questions: First, if the law is so popular (as the Obama Administration hopes), and the “consumer protections” so beneficial, then why does the Administration keep handing out waivers? Second, if the law is so unpopular (which it is) and well more than two million Americans have already received exemptions from its burdensome mandates, why not allow every American the opportunity to get a waiver (as Congressman Dan Boren wants to do)?