Both Republicans and the Obama administration have pushed misleading claims on what impact the federal health care law has on insurance premiums.
For more on this issue, see “Misleading on Premiums” from March 26.
Stories by Lori Robertson
Managing Editor, FactCheck.org
‘Life of Julia’ Not So Realistic
The Obama campaign’s fictitious portrayal of a woman’s life under the president’s policies versus those of Mitt Romney exaggerates the impact of the federal health care law.
Read about other claims in the “Julia” slide show in our May 8 article, “ ‘The Life of Julia,’ Corrected.”
Kids and Preexisting Conditions
An Obama campaign video wrongly implies that 17 million kids with preexisting conditions were being denied health insurance before the federal law was passed.
Read more about the Obama administration’s claim in our March 21 article, “Obama ‘Road’ Film Takes Some Detours.”
More Government Takeover Spin
Mitt Romney counts both public and private health care spending to come up with the exaggeration that government will make up “almost 50 percent” of the U.S. economy once the federal health care is fully in effect.
See our May 10 article, “Romney’s ‘Gross’ Exaggeration on ‘Obamacare,’ ” for more.
Viral Claims, Part II
A long-running chain email claims that Medicare premiums are going to shoot up to $247 per month in 2014 because of the health care law. That’s not true no matter how many times this email is forwarded.
See our April 30 Ask FactCheck — “Realtors, the 3.8% ‘Sales Tax’ and $247 Medicare Premiums” — for more.
Viral Claims, Part I
Contrary to what viral emails claim, there’s no 3.8 percent “sales tax” on homes in the federal health care law. The investment tax will affect few high-income earners.
See our April 30 Ask FactCheck — “Realtors, the 3.8% ‘Sales Tax’ and $247 Medicare Premiums” — for more.
Small Businesses and the Health Care Law
Is the Affordable Care Act “devastating to small businesses,” as some critics claim? We find such assertions are overblown. The law is actually beneficial to truly small companies.
See “GOP’s ‘Job-Killing’ Whopper, Again” (Feb. 21) for more on claims about the impact on small businesses.
Obama Misrepresents Ryan’s Plan
The president got a key point wrong when he attacked Rep. Paul Ryan’s plan for Medicare.
Read more about Obama’s claims in “Fall Preview: Obama vs. Romney (and Ryan),” April 6.
It’s a Job-Killer?
Claims that the health care law kills jobs are greatly exaggerated.
Read more about the claim in our Feb. 21 article, “GOP’s ‘Job-Killing’ Whopper, Again.”
The Contraception Conundrum
Is free contraception coverage revenue neutral, or does it increase insurance premiums? The evidence is conflicting and murky.
See our Feb. 24 article, “Cloudy Contraception Costs,” for more on this issue.