Fact check: Obama, Romney spin Supreme Court decision
By Lori Robertson, Robert Farley and Eugene Kiely, Factcheck.org
Updated 1h 46m ago
With the U.S. Supreme Court upholding the constitutionality of the Affordable Care Act on June 28, voters are guaranteed to continue hearing the same old false claims about the law from politicians. And President Barack Obama and presumptive GOP presidential nominee Mitt Romney wasted little time in taking to the airwaves to rehash plenty we've fact-checked before. Obama even threw in a few new claims.
Obama reiterated his "if you like your plan, you can keep your plan" refrain, despite the fact that at least a few million workers won't keep their employer-sponsored plans, according to the Congressional Budget Office.
The president also exaggerated the benefits of the law, such as the number of young adults who were able to join their parents' plans, thanks to the law, and the number of individuals who will receive rebates issued by insurance companies that didn't spend enough premium dollars on health care.
Romney repeated a number of distortions, saying that the law would "cut Medicare" by $500 billion and that it "adds trillions to our deficits." That's a reduction in the future growth of Medicare spending over 10 years. And CBO says the law would reduce the deficit.
Romney said the law is a "job-killer." But CBO says the law would have a "small" impact on jobs, mainly affecting the amount of labor workers choose to supply. Those getting subsidies, for instance, might work less hours since they're paying less for health care.
Romney claimed the law "puts the federal government between you and your doctor." The law would set minimum benefits packages, but medical services will not be government-run, nor does the law allow for rationing of care.
http://www.usatoday.com/news/politics/story/2012-06-29/fact-check-court-health/55927118/1
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