Wenstrup: The website is not the only problem; the law is the problem

WASHINGTON, D.C. – As the Affordable Care Act’s troubled rollout entered its seventh week, Congressman Brad Wenstrup offered both criticism and changes for the law.

Today, Wenstrup and the House of Representative passed the “Keep Your Health Plan Act” with bipartisan support to allow insurers to continue offering plans currently being canceled because of Obamacare.

Despite the support of 39 Democrats, the White House threatened to veto the bill late Thursday night.

“I’ve warned of the law’s consequences for years. Over 5 million Americans have already lost their insurance because of Obamacare,” Wenstrup said. “Website glitches are not the only problem. The law is the problem.”

Millions of Americans continue to lose health insurance coverage due to provisions in Obamacare. Earlier this year, Wenstrup and the House of Representatives voted to delay the individual mandate for a year, but were met by a veto threat from the White House.

“This is a sad day for the American people. Just a month ago President Obama went as far as shutting down the government to avoid even minor changes to Obamacare designed to protect Americans. Now, he is unilaterally and unlawfully changing his signature achievement only after the flaws are revealed,” Wenstrup said.

This week, October enrollment numbers showed only 1,150 Ohioans have signed up on the federal health care exchange. Wenstrup noted wryly that as a physician, he usually saw more patients in just two months. The next major milestone in the law’s implementation comes on Dec. 1, the date President Obama vowed to have the website, healthcare.gov, fixed.