Obamacare architect Gruber admitted it would NOT be affordable healthcare

Tuesday, December 30, 2014 by: J. D. Heyes
Tags: Obamacare, affordable healthcare, Jonathan Gruber

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(NaturalNews) The self-admitted architect behind the onerous Affordable Care Act has admitted that the law was going to be anything but affordable when he was writing it in conjunction with the White House.

MIT prof Jonathan Gruber, Obama's healthcare adviser (despite the president's denials) is continuing to withhold requested documents as he awaits being called back for additional testimony by the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee in this, the new year. But as the people's representatives await that information, even more shocking information has come to light detailing the multiple deceptions employed during the writing of the law that has become better known as Obamacare.

As reported by The Daily Caller:

Gruber said that Obamacare had no cost controls in it and would not be affordable in an October 2009 policy brief, presented here exclusively by TheDC. At the time, Gruber had already personally counseled Obama in the Oval Office and served on Obama's presidential transition team. Obama, meanwhile, told the American people that their premiums would go down dramatically.

If you want a big screen TV, you have to pay for that, too

"The problem is it starts to go hand in hand with the mandate; you can't mandate insurance that's not affordable. This is going to be a major issue," Gruber admitted in an October 2, 2009, lecture, the transcript of which comprised the policy brief (that brief can be viewed here^[PDF]).

"So what's different this time? Why are we closer than we've ever been before? Because there are no cost controls in these proposals. Because this bill's about coverage. Which is good! Why should we hold 48 million uninsured people hostage to the fact that we don't yet know how to control costs in a politically acceptable way? Let's get the people covered and then let's do cost control," he said.

The O-care adviser went on to say that there is only one sure way to control costs, and that is by denying treatment to people (rationing, in other words -- one of the concepts that critics of the law have always said would happen).

"The real substance of cost control is all about a single thing: telling patients they can't have something they want. It's about telling patients, 'That surgery doesn't do any good, so if you want it you have to pay the full cost,'" he said.

"There's no reason the American health care system can't be, 'You can have whatever you want, you just have to pay for it.' That's what we do in other walks of life. We don't say everyone has to have a large screen TV," he continued. "If you want a large screen TV, you have to pay for it. Basically the notion would be to move to a level where everyone has a solid basic insurance level of coverage. Above that people pay on their own, without tax-subsidized dollars, to buy a higher level of coverage."

Surprised we passed it

What's more, Gruber notes, the president himself knew early on that his signature legislation would do little if anything to actually control health costs (though, again, Obama pitched this as one of the primary reasons for passing the Affordable Care Act).

"I wish that President Obama could have stood up and said, 'You know, I don't know if this bill is going to control costs. It might, it might not. We're doing our best. But let me tell you what it's going to do..." Gruber said in a San Francisco podcast in 2012.

"If he could make that speech? Instead, he says 'I'm going to pass a bill that will lower your health care costs.' That sells," said Gruber. "Now, I wish the world was different. I wish people cared about the 50 million uninsured in America... But, you know, they don't. And I think, once again, I'm amazed politically that we got this bill through."

Sources:

http://dailycaller.com

https://www.maxwell.syr.edu^[PDF]

http://www.wnd.com

http://dailycaller.com