The truth is on our side.

Our number one enemy is our own ignorance (the lack of knowledge – the lack of knowing).  As a consequence we are fundamentally unable to tell the story

SUMMARY:

1. APPEAR INFORMED – know what the ruling is called – “National Federation of Independent Business v. Sebelius” also “11-393” – or maybe “Sebelius”
2. Get your very own copy of the ruling ( http://www.supremecourt.gov/opinions/11pdf/11-393c3a2.pdf )
3. Read it… for some, it may be very painful – but it is necessary.
4. Find 3-5 quotes you find interesting from the text… quote and reference the material directly.
5. Use that material to pivot and attack… if you are defending, you are losing.
6. Consider SCOTUSblog ( www.scotusblog.com/about/ ) if you must, for fact checking or seeking additional insight after you struggle with an opinion.

Fight Lies with Truth

PRIME DIRECTIVE:  Your opposition may be uninsured…at which point, too bad, so sad, tuff on them.  You have already won.  Don’t argue.

Otherwise, your opposition has NO tax argument concerning the individual mandate.  They are unaffected.

Confront the opposition that wish to bully you with the evil “tax” word…

· 3. CHIEF JUSTICE ROBERTS concluded in Part III–B that the individual mandate must be construed as imposing a tax on those who do not have health insurance, if such a construction is reasonable.

This is not about TAX.  The opposition wants the argument to be about tax.  The opposition needs the argument to be about tax.  Tax is not a pretty word.  Tax is not pleasant… but it is honest and true.  The word “tax” will not give you koodies, diarrhea, or a pox.  You only have your own fear to face.  But know you don’t stand alone… have courage.

Pivot the argument to where it needs to be…  People who do not have insurance, are by default, already taxing those of us that do have insurance…today!  Get the opposition to argue “reasonable.”  Push them from crying about being a victim of a mythical tax to being a victim of the REAL, burdensome healthcare tax today… the uninsured!

· 4.(b) Such an analysis suggests that the shared responsibility payment may for constitutional purposes be considered a tax. The payment is not so high that there is really no choice but to buy health insurance; the payment is not limited to willful violations, as penalties for unlawful acts often are; and the payment is collected solely by the IRS through the normal means of taxation. [cite] None of this is to say that payment is not intended to induce the purchase of health insurance. But the mandate need not be read to declare that failing to do so is unlawful. Neither the Affordable Care Act nor any other law attaches negative legal consequences to not buying health insurance, beyond requiring a payment to the IRS. And Congress’s choice of language—stating that individuals “shall” obtain insurance or pay a “penalty”—does not require reading §5000A as punishing unlawful conduct. It may also be read as imposing a tax on those who go without insurance.

Stand Your Ground

Lies and deception have no place among the truthful.  Let the beacon of truth burn away the darkness of lies.  Send the shadows of deception shrinking back into the corners of foul minds.   If someone tells you, “Obamacare is <ignorant, ill-informed, lie>.” Pull the train chain!  Stop the bus!  Confront them.  SAY NO!  If they are going to hang naked opinions in the wind…point out their uglies for everyone to see!

TALKING POINTS:

Very simply, we are NEVER going to get away from the word “tax.”  Stop trying to fight it head on.  AKIDO!  Make their energy yours.  Own their movement.  Pivot the tax argument… to a conservative value.  We know we will protect the less fortunate in our society.  We know we will shelter those who cannot shelter themselves.  However:

· This is a tax on the parasites of American society.

· This is a tax on freeloaders that would gnaw at the nurturing teat of a mothering economy.

· This is a tax on deadbeats that CHOOSE to stand apart in individual defiance, refusing to step up with any level of personal responsibility in the management of their health care planning.

We must redirect the opposition.  The individual mandate was a creation of the Heritage Foundation… a conservative think tank!  The alternative is death or slavery (indentured servitude).

Victories to date (as a direct result of “Obamacare”)…

· 2010

• Putting Information for Consumers Online
• Prohibiting Denying Coverage of Children Based on Pre-Existing Conditions
• Prohibiting Insurance Companies from Rescinding Coverage
• Eliminating Lifetime Limits on Insurance Coverage
• Regulating Annual Limits on Insurance Coverage
• Appealing Insurance Company Decisions
• Establishing Consumer Assistance Programs in the States
• Providing Small Business Health Insurance Tax Credits
• Offering Relief for 4 Million Seniors Who Hit the Medicare Prescription Drug “Donut Hole.”
• Providing Free Preventive Care
• Preventing Disease and Illness
• Cracking Down on Health Care Fraud ($2.5B for FY2009).
• Providing Access to Insurance for Uninsured Americans with Pre-Existing Conditions.
• Extending Coverage for Young Adults
• Expanding Coverage for Early Retirees (visit www.ERRP.gov )
• Rebuilding the Primary Care Workforce
• Holding Insurance Companies Accountable for Unreasonable Rate Hikes
• Allowing States to Cover More People on Medicaid
• Increasing Payments for Rural Health Care Providers
• Strengthening Community Health Centers

· 2011

• Offering Prescription Drug Discounts
• Providing Free Preventive Care for Seniors
• Improving Health Care Quality and Efficiency
• Improving Care for Seniors After They Leave the Hospital -The Community Care Transitions program
• Introducing New Innovations to Bring Down Costs – The Independent Payment Advisory Board
• Increasing Access to Services at Home and in the Community – The Community First Choice Option
• Bringing Down Health Care Premiums – the law requires that at least 85% of all premium dollars collected by insurance companies for large employer plans are spent on health care services and health care quality improvement. For plans sold to individuals and small employers, at least 80% of the premium must be spent on benefits and quality improvement. If insurance companies do not meet these goals, because their administrative costs or profits are too high, they must provide rebates to consumers.  EFFECTIVE January 1, 2011
• Addressing Overpayments to Big Insurance Companies and Strengthening Medicare Advantage

· 2012

• Encouraging Integrated Health Systems – the formation of “Accountable Care Organizations”
• Understanding and Fighting Health Disparities – program to collect and report racial, ethnic and language data
• Linking Payment to Quality Outcomes – financial incentives to hospitals to improve the quality of care (Oct. 2012)
• Reducing Paperwork and Administrative Costs – standardize billing and requires health plans to begin adopting and implementing rules for the secure, confidential, electronic exchange of health information. Using electronic health records will reduce paperwork and administrative burdens, cut costs, reduce medical errors and most importantly, improve the quality of care (eff. Oct 2012)

When the oppositions says they want to repeal “Obamacare”… show them this list and ask them if BACKWARDS is really the right direction?  When the opposition suggests “Obamacare” is breaking the backs of small business, ask them to point out which provisions are so harmful…specifically!  Remind the opposition provisions for Small Business Health Insurance.

Where to go for more information…

HealthCare.gov – a.k.a.  “Obamacare” http://www.healthcare.gov/index.html

The Affordable Care Act – (the law)

• Full Text of the Affordable Care Act (PDF – 2.6 MB) - http://docs.house.gov/energycommerce/ppacacon.pdf
• The Affordable Care Act, Section by Section - http://www.healthcare.gov/law/full/index.html

Texas Consumer Assistance ( http://www.healthcare.gov/using-insurance/managing/consumer-help/tx.html )

Texas no longer operates a federally-funded Consumer Assistance Program under the Affordable Care Act. The new consumer protections and benefits of the law still apply to you, however. The agencies listed below can help you take advantage of some of these new protections and benefits and they can answer your questions about different types of coverage. If you need health insurance, be sure to check out HealthCare.gov’s Plan Finder.  It will help you find and compare health care coverage options in your area.

If you have questions about insurance you bought for yourself and/or your family or you have insurance provided by an employer who does business only in Texas, contact:

Texas Department of Insurance

333 Guadalupe, Austin, TX 78701
(800) 578-4677
http://www.tdi.texas.gov/index.html

If you have a hard time affording health coverage and you have questions about eligibility or current Medicaid benefits, go to: 

Texas Medicaid Program

Texas Health and Human Services Commission
Brown-Heatly Building
4900 N. Lamar Blvd.,Austin, TX 78751
(800) 252-8263, TTY: (888) 425-6889
http://www.hhsc.state.tx.us/medicaid/

If you are not eligible for Medicaid, your child may still be eligible for the Children’s Health Insurance Program. For questions about eligibility or benefits, go to:

Texas Children’s Medicaid (CHIP)

Texas Health and Human Services Commission
Brown-Heatly Building
4900 N. Lamar Blvd.,Austin, TX 78751-2316
(877) 543-7669, (800) 647-6558, TTY: (888) 425-66889
http://chipmedicaid.org/en
http://www.chipmedicaid..org/en/Apply-Now

If you have a question, complaint, or dispute regarding insurance you get through a “self-insured” employer (typically a large company or one with locations in multiple states or countries), go to:

U.S. Department of Labor

Employee Benefits Security Administration
Dallas Regional Office
525 South Griffin Street, Room 900, Dallas, TX 75202
(972) 850-4500, (866) 444-EBSA (3272)
http://www.dol.gov/ebsa/

If you are on Medicare and have a question, or if you have a disability or end stage renal disease and want to enroll or find out if you are eligible for Medicare, contact:

Health Information Counseling & Advocacy Program of Texas

Texas Department of Insurance
333 Guadalupe, Austin, TX 78701
(800) 252-9240
ConsumerProtection@tdi..state.tx.us
http://www..tdi.texas.gov/consumer/hicap/hicaphme.html
http://www.dads.state.tx.us/services/index.cfm

If you have been denied health insurance by private insurance companies because of a pre-existing condition, you may be eligible for a Pre-Existing Condition Insurance Plan (PCIP), go to:

PCIP

National Finance Center
Pre-Existing Condition Insurance Plan
P.O. Box 60017, New Orleans, LA 70160
(866) 717-5826
https://www.pcip.gov/Default.html

If you are a veteran and have a question or concern about veterans’ health care benefits, go to:

US Department of Veterans Affairs
(877) 222-VETS (8387)
http://www1.va.gov/health/

If you have questions about your health insurance that are not covered by the above resources, call the Health Insurance Assistance Team of the U.S. Center for Consumer Information and Insurance Oversight at (888) 393-2789.