Tax Reform Bill: Will It Repeal Obamacare’s Penalties?

It’s that time of year again. As you add pumpkin pies and turkey to your shopping list, it’s also the time when government financially twists your arm into buying something whether you want it or not, and I’m not referring to pies. I’m referring to Obamacare (or, the deceptively named ACA: “Affordable” Care Act). The 2018 Open Enrollment Period for Obamacare (ACA) began a few days ago.

“Trump is President, but ACA is still the law of the land until further notice,” warns the Obamacare Facts website. Which means to avoid being penalized for not having health insurance, Americans are forced into getting coverage during Open Enrollment, or else they must fork over the penalty fee.

Imagine if your grocery store did that to you, saying: “You don’t want to buy Thanksgiving stuffing? Well, we’ve determined it’s good for you, so we’re charging you a fine for not buying our product.” I wouldn’t want my grocery store to do that to me, and I’m sick and tired of government doing that to me when it comes to health insurance. Will government ever stop meddling in my personal affairs?

Relief might be coming from an unlikely source—not from an Obamacare repeal bill, but from the recent GOP tax reform bill. A day before the draft bill came out on November 2nd, President Trump tweeted, “Wouldn’t it be great to Repeal the very unfair and unpopular Individual Mandate in ObamaCare and use those savings for further Tax Cuts for the Middle Class…”

Indeed, the nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office estimates that getting rid of the Obamacare Individual Mandate would save $416 billion over the next eight years!

Despite Trump’s requests, the $416 billion might not end up back in taxpayers’ pockets. When the House Republicans released the draft tax reform bill last Thursday, it did not include tax cuts from repealing the Individual Mandate.

There’s still cause for hope, though. The repeal could be added later in the Senate, ​pushed​ by Sen. Tom Cotton and Sen. Ted Cruz, or the House can still revise the draft, led by Rep. Mark Meadows and Rep. Mark Walker.​​

We’ll be keeping an eye on this tax bill, so keep your eye on your inbox for updates. In the next issue of President’s Corner, I’ll discuss a surprising twist to the tax reform bill: the draft of the bill has bravely included pro-life reform. I’m looking forward to telling you about it.

In Service,

Gary Gates
President and Founder
Colorado Citizens Coalition