Monday, November 15, 2010

Obamacare Waivers Prove Policy is a Jobs Killer, Unions Benefit Most


111 companies and organizations were granted waivers by Obama’s Dept. of Health and Human Services so that they could get out of having to comply with Obamacare and unions were particularly well rewarded by the HHS with these waivers.



Interestingly, there was no great announcement of these waivers issued to the press. The HHS buried the waiver announcement six layers deep on its webpage and posted them on Friday when they imagined no one would notice. It’s a typical Friday evening document dump so common when an administration wants to avoid the prying eyes of the people. So much for the “most transparent administration in history,” eh?

One thing is sure about these waivers. Obama rewarded his union pals quite well. Som 15 unions and union healthcare or financial fund and insurance providers fill the list of companies and groups that will not have to operate under Obamacare’s destructive rules.
  • The Service Employees Benefit Fund
  • United Food and Commercial Workers Allied Trade Health & Welfare Trust Fund
  • International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers Union No. 195
  • Asbestos Workers Local 53 Welfare Fund
  • Employees Security Funds
  • Plumbers & Pipefitters Local 123 Welfare Fund
  • United Food and Commercial Workers Local 227
  • United Food and Commercial Workers Maximus Local 455
  • Service Employees International Union Local 25
  • United Food and Commercial Workers Local 1262
  • Musicians Health Fund Local 802
  • Hospitality Benefit Fund Local 17
  • Transport Workers Union
  • United Federation of Teachers Welfare Fund
  • International Union of Painters and Allied Trades (AFL-CIO)

Interestingly enough, Obama has waived the onerous Obamacare rules for quite a few healthcare providers, too. One wonders how good Obamacare could be if the rules are waived for actual healthcare providers?
Most outrageous addition to the waiver list is the exemption that New England Health Care got. Is NEHC a healthcare provider or insurance company, you ask? Nope. It’s a policy group that, according to its website, is “dedicated to transforming health care for the benefit of patients and their families.”
As Jazz Shaw notes the irony is rich.
So an institute dedicated to finding ways to reform the health care system had to apply for an exemption from the administration’s reforms to the health care system? Keep your eyes on the news next week, as I’m fairly sure that the heads of some immigration reform lobbying groups will be deported.
In any case, this list shows that HHS realizes how bad Obamacare is for the healthcare plans on a wide range of industries, so bad that the new rules had to be waived. And remember. Once Obama waives all these businesses from having to put up with Obamacare, that just puts more burden on the rest of us that aren’t big campaign donors to Obama’s warchest.
Here is the full list of those that received waivers:
  • Protocol Marketing Group
  • Sasnak
  • Star Tek
  • Adventist Care Centers
  • B.E.S.T of NY
  • Boskovich Farms, Inc
  • Gallegos Corp
  • Jeffords Steel and Engineering
  • O.K. Industries
  • Service Employees Benefit Fund
  • Sun Pacific Farming Coop
  • UFCW Allied Trade Health & Welfare Trust
  • HCR Manor Care
  • IBEW No.915
  • Integra BMS for Culp, Inc.
  • New England Health Care
  • Aegis Insurance
  • Alliance One Tobacco
  • Asbestos Workers Local 53 Welfare Fund
  • Assurant Health (2nd Application)
  • Captain Elliot’s Party Boats
  • Carlson Restaurants
  • CH Guenther & Son
  • CKM Industries dba Miller Environmental
  • CWVEBA
  • Darden Restaurants
  • Duarte Nursery
  • Employees Security Fund
  • Florida Trowel Trades
  • Ingles Markets
  • Meijer
  • O’Reilly Auto Parts
  • Plumbers & Pipefitters Local 123 Welfare Fund
  • Sun Belt
  • UFCW Local 227
  • Uncle Julio’s
  • United Group
  • US Imaging
  • Vino Farms
  • Advanta
  • Agricare
  • Alaska Seafood
  • American Fidelity
  • Convergys
  • Darensberries
  • Gowan Company
  • Greystar
  • Macayo Restaurants
  • Periodical Services
  • UniFirst
  • Universal Forest Products
  • UFCW Maximus Local 455
  • AHS
  • GuideStone Financial Resources
  • Local 25 SEIU
  • MAUSER Corp.
  • Preferred Care, Inc.
  • Ruby Tuesday
  • The Dixie Group, Inc.
  • UFCW Local 1262
  • Whelan Security Company
  • AMF Bowling Worldwide
  • Assisted Living Concepts
  • Case & Associates
  • GPM Investments
  • Grace Living Centers
  • Mountaire
  • Swift Spinning
  • Belmont Village
  • Caliber Services
  • Cracker Barrel
  • DISH Network
  • Groendyke Transport, Inc
  • Pocono Medical Center
  • Regis Corporation
  • The Pictsweet Co.
  • Diversified Interiors
  • Local 802 Musicians Health Fund
  • Medical Card System
  • The Buccaneer
  • CIGNA
  • Greater Metropolitan Hotel
  • Local 17 Hospitality Benefit Fund
  • GS-ILA
  • Allied
  • Harden Healthcare
  • Health and Welfare Benefit System
  • Health Connector
  • I.U.P.A.T
  • Sanderson Plumbing Products, Inc.
  • Transport Workers
  • UFT Welfare Fund
  • Aegis
  • Aetna
  • Allflex
  • Baptist Retirement
  • BCS Insurance
  • Cryogenic
  • Fowler Packing Co.
  • Guy C. Lee Mfg.
  • HealthPort
  • Jack in the Box
  • Maritime Association
  • Maverick County
  • Metro Paving Fund
  • PMPS-ILA
  • PS-ILA
  • QK/DRD (Denny’s)
  • Reliance Standard
  • Tri-Pak
  • UABT
Big Government