U.S. Health Secretary: ‘Health coverage is not going to change’
Jul 10, 2013, 6:47 PM | Updated: 6:47 pm
PHOENIX – U.S. Secretary of Health and Human Services Kathleen Sebelius told News/Talk 92.3 KTAR’s Mac & Gaydos Wednesday about what Obamacare will do and what the one-year delay actually means.
Sebelius was asked the question that has been on everyone’s mind: Is healthcare coverage under Obamacare going to cost the average American more?
“For 85 percent of Americans who already have health coverage things really are not going to change.”
Sebelius said that grants will be put in place to help not only expand healthcare coverage to the uninsured, but also to boost the economy.
“Good healthcare is actually a great economic boost to any community and to the workers so we were announcing that we were going to be putting across the country about $150 million; $2.3 million is coming here to Arizona into community health centers.”
Refuting claims that Obamacare would be a waste of money and that the cost would outweigh the benefits, Sebelius said that the new law would actually end up creating more jobs.
“It’s a win-win situation. More folks are going to be able to get affordable health insurance, there will be new jobs throughout Arizona with this new outreach and education folks and more assets coming into the state of Arizona.”
When asked about the one-year granted to big businesses to enact Obamacare and the confusion that arose from all of this, Sebelius clarified that the general public would still be able to enroll this coming fall.
“There is a lot of misinformation. There is no one-year delay. Marketplaces in every state of the country including here in Arizona will be open for enrollment Oct. 1, with benefits starting in January, so that is actually on time and going to be delivered appropriately.”
Sebelius then clarified that the delay was set in place due to employers who already offer health coverage, but who might need to fill out an extra page or two of paperwork.
“What has been rolled back for a year is a lot of paperwork to be filled out by larger employers who already basically offer health coverage to their employees, so that won’t really occur until 2015.”
Sebelius attended the Mountain Park Health Center in Phoenix to outline the plans for grants that will be used nationwide to make health care coverage easier on the American people.
