Guest Column by Greg Davids

Remember when Tom Brokaw used to host a five-minute news segment called the “Fleecing of America?”

Well, we could do a week-long miniseries on the thousands of residents who are now being fleeced thanks to Obamacare, MNsure and stubborn St. Paul liberals who are content to twiddle their thumbs while ignoring the latest unaffordable health insurance carnage.

According to Minnesota Commerce Department data, the average family buying health insurance on its own will see premiums increase by 41 percent next year. This is on top of double-digit average increases in each of the past two years. In large part we have Obamacare to thank for these massive price hikes.

MNsure was the crowning achievement of one-party Democratic rule in Minnesota. It was passed with zero Republican votes because Republicans immediately recognized that it was an overpriced bureaucracy built to fail hardworking Minnesotans seeking to purchase health insurance or face huge IRS penalties.

As I continue to hear from area residents, the failure has clearly begun.

In the southeastern Minnesota district I represent — where premiums cost two to three times as much when compared to other parts of this state — I have received countless phone calls from residents who are legitimately in a panic wondering how they are going to pay for what is supposed to be affordable health insurance.

Some examples: a 64-year-old woman’s premium has jumped to $1,261 per month; a 62-year-old farmer has seen his premium rise from $500 to $800; and a farm family with two 30-year-olds and two young children is now facing a $900 to $1,600 per month increase.

That’s real money folks; money they can’t afford to throw away due to a costly mistake leveled on them by Gov. Dayton and legislative Democrats. And like the vast majority of Minnesotans without employer-based or public insurance, these folks won’t see a financial break through federal tax credits. Going without insurance isn’t an option because that means they’re breaking the law, so these residents are now going to lose thousands of dollars with no relief in sight thanks to Obamacare mandates and the lack of choice on MNsure.

During the 2016 session, our top legislative priority must center on rectifying this health insurance conundrum, and our first step needs to be getting MNsure out of the commercial insurance market.

Democrats promised us 413,000 MNsure enrollees. We’ve seen 50,000. To date, Minnesota has spent $200 million on a program that has under-delivered. By law we’ll continue wasting millions on MNsure every year it remains allegedly functional.

We can’t do anything about Obamacare, as it is the federal law of the land. But, the state controls whether it continues to pour tens of millions more into MNsure or cut bait and build something that works. With a federal website that does exactly the same thing as MNsure, there’s no reason to continue this charade. According to Dayton’s own estimates, this move would save us $17 million over the next three years.

Then we need to approve a proposal that would improve transparency and lower rates by increasing health insurance access and competition. MNsure’s interim Chief Executive Allison O’Toole recently said if Minnesotans want to save money on health insurance premiums going forward, “they’ve got to get off the couch” and shop for better prices.

So what do you do in southeastern Minnesota when there’s currently only one legitimate choice? The answer is simple: allow more choices with better options through greater competition for your health insurance business.

Our friends across the aisle need to finally recognize MNsure’s failure and act on behalf of financially-strapped Minnesotans. They helped create a false health care crisis in this state and in doing so, destroyed what was one of the best health insurance systems in the nation. Now, our residents are paying the price.

It’s time for MNsure apologists to admit their mistake and help Minnesota move on, while beginning to work on a bipartisan affordable health insurance pact that will actually help — not fleece — our residents.

 

State Rep. Greg Davids, R-Preston, is co-chairman of the MNsure Legislative Oversight Committee.