President Barack Obama used his weekly radio address to discuss the upcoming implementation of the Affordable Care Act; the health care reform derisively called "Obamacare" has been fought tooth and nail by Republicans since becoming law three years ago, according to Politico.
"A lot of Republicans seem to believe that if they can gum up the works and make this law fail they'll somehow be sticking it to me," President Obama said. "But they'd just be sticking it to you."
As the law is becoming closer to being implemented it seems to be facing trouble every step of the way. It was recently announced that the employee mandate that would require employers of over 50 people provide health care to their workers was pushed back a year, an executive decision that some are questioning the constitutionality of, according to the Wall Street Journal.
"This was the law," Sen. Tom Harkin, D-Iowa, a lawyer by trade, said about the delays. "How can they change the law?"
The insurance exchanges, the provision of the law that allows individuals without health coverage provided by their employers to enroll for coverage through a competitive marketplace, start on Jan. 1 with consumers able to sign up Oct 1. The President attacked Republicans for not doing their part to inform their constituents about the law and helping them reap the benefits provided by the law, according to Politico.
"It's OK if you're not a fan of the Affordable Care Act - you can take advantage of these things anyway," President Obama said.
As Republicans continue to try and kill the law before it goes into effect, the House has voted to repeal it over 35 times, there has been some talk that as a last resort they may try to force a government shut down by not agreeing to any budget that doesn't defund health care reform. Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Texas, has been trying to rally Republicans to his side although it is unclear if he has enough support to actually make good of his threats, according to Time.
"(There are) a group of Republicans in Congress working hard to confuse people, and making empty promises that they'll either shut down the health care law, or, if they don't get their way, they'll shut down the government," President Obama said. "Think about that. They're actually having a debate between hurting Americans who will no longer be denied affordable care just because they've been sick - and harming the economy and millions of Americans in the process."
"Your health insurance isn't something to play politics with," President Obama said. "Our economy isn't something to play politics with. This isn't a game. This is about the economic security of millions of families."
In the Republican rebuttal Rep. Shelley Moore Capito, R-W.Va., argued that the Senate and the president need to follow the lead of the House and agree to delay the law that she said "is already raising costs, hurting jobs, and reducing access to the plans and the doctors" people prefer, according to Voice of America.
