NRSC: With Two-Year Anniversary Approaching, The Consequences Of Bill Nelson’s Healthcare Law

WASHINGTON, March 20 -- The National Republican Senatorial Committee issued the following news release:

When liberal U.S. Senator Bill Nelson cast the 60th and deciding vote for President Barack Obama's job-killing healthcare law, he specifically promised the legislation would lower premiums, but nearly two years later families are now paying more money for their health insurance.

FactCheck.org has found that ObamaCare has made healthcare slightly less affordable and it's causing premiums to go up - not down, as Nelson and his fellow Democrats have claimed it would.

Additionally, the Kaiser Family Foundation found that in 2011 the average healthcare premium climbed from $13,770 to $15,073, which amounts to a 9 percent increase.

As the New York Times reports:

"The cost of health insurance for many Americans this year climbed more sharply than in previous years, outstripping any growth in workers' wages and adding more uncertainty about the pace of rising medical costs. A new study by the Kaiser Family Foundation, a nonprofit research group that tracks employer-sponsored health insurance on a yearly basis, shows that the average annual premium for family coverage through an employer reached $15,073 in 2011, an increase of 9 percent over the previous year." (Reed Abelson, "U.S. Health Insurance Cost Rises Sharply, Study Finds," The New York Times , 9/27/11)

"Bill Nelson's decision to make Barack Obama's healthcare bill the law of land has increased the average healthcare premium by $1,300," said National Republican Senatorial Committee (NRSC) spokesman Jahan Wilcox. "With so many Floridians already suffering from the failed economic and energy policies of Bill Nelson, this is just another costly burden that Nelson has placed on the Sunshine State."

BACKGROUND ...

Bill Nelson Promised That Government-Run Healthcare Would Lower Premiums

BILL NELSON: Nelson said he will try to amend the [healthcare] bill to preserve the benefits of Medicare Advantage plans for senior citizens already enrolled. Those benefits include lower premiums or low co-pays. (William Gibson, Nelson backs Baucus bill as `starting point', South Florida Sun Sentinel, 09/16/09)

But Since ObamaCare Has Passed Healthcare Premiums Have Skyrocketed

2011: "The health-insurance premiums employers pay rose sharply this year, with the average annual cost of family coverage passing the $15,000 mark for the first time, according to a major survey." ("Employer Health Premiums Rise Sharply," The Wall Street Journal, 9/27/11)

* "The average annual family premium for 2011 was $15,073, up from $13,770 last year." ("Employer Health Premiums Rise Sharply," The Wall Street Journal, 9/27/11)

* "Still, with rising costs, workers paid more, up an average of $132 a year for family coverage. Since 1999, the dollar amount workers contribute toward premiums nationally has grown 168 percent, while their wages have grown by 50 percent, according to the survey." ("Cost Of Employer Insurance Plans Surge In 2011," Kaiser Health News , 9/27/11)

* "The cost of health insurance for many Americans this year climbed more sharply than in previous years, outstripping any growth in workers' wages and adding more uncertainty about the pace of rising medical costs." ("U.S. Health Insurance Cost Rises Sharply, Study Finds," The New York Times , 9/27/11)

"The 9% average increase in family premiums for 2011, reported in an annual poll of employers performed by the Kaiser Family Foundation and the Health Research and Educational Trust, comes despite a continued trend toward more limited use of medical services in the U.S. Last year, family premiums rose just 3%, the survey found." ("Employer Health Premiums Rise Sharply," The Wall Street Journal, 9/27/11)

In 2012, Florida Is Expected To See An 8 Percent Increase In Employer-Sponsored Health Insurance Costs. "The cost for employer-sponsored health insurance in Florida is expected to increase 8 percent next year..." (Liz Freeman, "Study: Florida Workers Face 8 Percent Health Insurance Cost Hike Or Higher Deductible," Naples News, 11/21/11)

TNS MJ88-120321-3814682 StaffFurigay