Obamacare chief highly evasive when asked whether exchanges will be ready on Oct. 1

Saturday, September 28, 2013 by: J. D. Heyes
Tags: Obamacare, evading questions, health insurance exchanges

(NaturalNews) Have you noticed that, when administration officials are asked specific questions about Obamacare, they tend to not want to answer them directly? Usually when that happens it's because a) they don't know the answer, or b) they know you won't like the answer they give, so c) they have to search for another answer, or d) not really answer the question at all.

That cycle of evasion has been happening a lot recently when the subject turns to Obamacare, especially when the questions are about whether or not the called-for health insurance exchanges under the law are going to be ready for the onslaught of Americans who must enroll in then.

During a recent House Energy and Commerce Oversight and Investigations subcommittee hearing, the top official responsible for implementing Obamacare on behalf of the administration would not answer "yes" or "no" when questioned whether the exchanges will be ready Oct. 1, when they are to go live.

Dodge, obfuscate, twist, turn and run

As reported by Breitbart News:

Rep. Michael Burgess (R-TX) asked Center for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) Center for Consumer Information and Insurance Oversight director Gary Cohen if the Obamacare exchanges will be ready on Oct. 1, as the law requires. Burgess told Cohen "yes" or "no."

But that's too simple and straightforward. Cohen replied: "Consumers will be able to go online, they'll be able to get a determination of whatever tax subsidies they're eligible for, they'll be able to look at the plans that are available wherever they live, they will be able to see the premium net of subsidy that they would have to pay, and they would be able to choose a plan and enroll in coverage, beginning Oct. 1."

Not satisfied with the evasiveness, Burgess pressed, "Let me rephrase the question... Will the enrollment process be ready Oct. 1?"

Seems simple enough, doesn't it?

Arrogantly, Cohen replied, "I have nothing further to add to my answer."

Next, after the panel marked "an equivocal response to" the first question, Burgess followed up by asking if the exchanges would be "ready by Jan. 1 of 2014."

"Consumers will be able to - it's the same answer," Cohen responded.

Burgess pointed out to Cohen the obvious - that the Obama hack was indeed the person who "is in charge" of implementation. Cohen said his answers are "based on what I've been told by the people who are building the IT system. So it's my understanding."

Following the hearing, at a Conversations with Conservatives (CWC) press event at the Heritage Foundation, Burgess readdressed his line of questioning with assembled guests.

No one in this White House wants to discuss Obamacare details

"I just came from a very long hearing with the head of Consumer Information and Insurance Oversight," Burgess said, as reported by Breitbart News.

"That is essentially the implementation part of CMS [Center for Medicare and Medicaid Services] putting the Affordable Care Act into place. They cannot tell you, they cannot answer a 'yes' or 'no' question: 'Are you going to be ready on October 1 for open enrollment?' They will not answer the question: 'Will you be ready for people to be covered January 1?' They came back at you with some sort of nebulous, roundabout, but they would not answer a 'yes' or 'no' question on the record. I think that's very telling."

Very telling indeed, especially when the truth is not something this administration is willing to admit - that it plainly, clearly is not ready for this rollout.

Not much about Obamacare thus far has been good or positive in fact. Virtually everything Obama & Co. said about it has been proven to be a lie. Premiums won't be lower; costs won't come down; you can't keep your old plan, and in many cases, you won't be able to keep your own doctor.

That anyone thought the federal government, for all its bloated inefficiency, could hope to "run healthcare" in America, is in and of itself hard to believe.

Sources:

http://www.breitbart.com

http://www.naturalnews.com

http://www.foxnews.com