Lankford, Johnson, Republican Colleagues Push to Eliminate Failed Obamacare Program

WASHINGTON, DC — Senator James Lankford (R-OK) along with Senators Ron Johnson (R-WI), Roger Wicker (R-MS), Cindy Hyde-Smith (R-MS), Pat Toomey (R-PA), Mike Lee (R-UT), Cynthia Lummis (R-WY), John Barrasso (R-WY), Mike Braun (R-IN), Kevin Cramer (R-ND), Jim Inhofe (R-OK), Marsha Blackburn (R-TN), and Rand Paul (R-KY) introduced the Repeal Insurance Plans of the Multi-State Program Act (RIP MSP Act) on Wednesday — an effort to terminate Obamacare’s failed Multi-State Plan program.

Section 1334 of the Affordable Care Act requires the Office of Personnel Management (OPM) to contract with at least two national health plans, one of which must be a non-profit plan, to compete directly with private plans in every state. These plans are called Multi-State Plans, or MSPs — and under current law, they are required to be available in all 50 states. However, no states participate in the program, which has caused the federal government to waste $10 million per year.

The bill text can be found here.

“This program is the definition of government waste. The failed Obamacare program required every state to participate, yet the ‘multi-state’ program is not offered in a single state,” said the senators. “This plan has cost the federal government tens of millions since its nationwide implementation in 2014, has failed to meet statutory requirements, and is diverting necessary resources from what should be the OPM’s core mission-critical programs. Congress needs to let the OPM focus on its job, eliminate this failed program, and work to ensure health care is more affordable for all Americans.” 

In addition, support for ending the program has been expressed by a variety of groups and is noted below:

• United States Office of Personnel Management
• National Active and Retired Federal Employees Association
• National Association of Insurance Commissioners
• Heritage Foundation

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