30 companies get one-year waiver from health reform rule

4.  A Predictable and Stable Legal Order

  A government with moral and legal authority promulgates written rules and universally, impartially and uniformly enforces the rules, which provides a predictable and stable legal order on which to base economic and personal decisions.  The law prevails, not the proclamation or arbitrary decision of a ruler, government bureaucrat, the enforcer (e.g., policeman) or judge.

 

30 companies get one-year waiver from health reform rule

According to the Chicago Sun-Times, 30 companies were granted a one-year waiver by Secretary of Health and Human Services.  Approximately, one million insured workers are affected by the Secretary’s action.  Many of the companies had contemplated terminating health insurance because of the cost of the mandates in the new health care law. 

Caroline Baum in Bloomberg News describes the waiver process:

The gist of it is this:

— the Secretary of HHS is authorized to determine the minimum coverage limits;

— the Secretary of HHS is authorized to waive those limits if compliance with them “would result in a significant decrease in access to benefits or a significant increase in premiums,” according to the memo.

The state insurance commissioners can give the secretary advice,…, but she doesn’t have to take it.

That pretty much describes the operating premise for the legislation that changes health care as we know it.

Why, the quick approval, before the regulations have been promulgated?  It’s election time.  The Obama administration could not have thousands of insurance policies cancelled just prior to the elections.  Thus the bureaucracy abruptly acted.

Meanwhile, the convoluted legislation gives the same bureaucracy great leeway in writing the rules and regulations.  What will the legislation, regulations and waivers ultimately mandate?  America must wait and see. 

What will be required of the 30 companies next year?  How many more will seek waivers?  How will this play politically?  Nobody knows.  It will be decided by bureaucrats, the Secretary of Health and Human Services and the courts.  All of which are not elected.  Arbitrary is the legal process and order.  Bureaucrats arbitrarily write the regulations.  And, the Secretary arbitrarily enforces the law.

This is not a predictable and stable legal order and is a major reason why large and small businesses are not hiring new employees.  This is terrible governance. And it could be worse, the Secretary has the power to pick which companies must comply and which receive waivers.  Think of the political conniving.