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A Project of The Annenberg Public Policy Center

The Great Premium Debate Continues

The Great Premium Debate Continues

Rep. Michele Bachmann wrongly claims that we’re seeing “huge increases” in employer-sponsored plans, while President Obama touts historically low health care inflation, which experts say is mainly due to the slow economy, not the health care law.

‘Cassidycare?’ Come On!

‘Cassidycare?’ Come On!

A Democratic TV ad makes some audaciously false claims about Rep. Bill Cassidy, Louisiana Sen. Mary Landrieu’s main Republican opponent.

Disconnecting the Dots in Arkansas

Disconnecting the Dots in Arkansas

A TV ad says Rep. Tom Cotton was “paid handsomely working for insurance companies” and wants to transform Medicare in ways that would benefit the industry at the expense of seniors. But there’s no evidence Cotton did work for insurers.

Reality Confronts Obama’s False Promise

Reality Confronts Obama’s False Promise

We’ve been saying for years that President Obama was over-simplifying and over-promising when he kept saying, “if you like your health care plan, you can keep your health care plan” under the new health care law. Now reality is catching up with his political spin.

Blunt Wrong on Income Verification

Blunt Wrong on Income Verification

Sen. Roy Blunt falsely claimed the Obama administration had “waived the income verification requirement” of the federal health care law.

Bachmann’s Killer Health Care Claims

Bachmann’s Killer Health Care Claims

Rep. Michele Bachmann claims that “vulnerable women, vulnerable children, vulnerable senior citizens” will all “pay more” under the federal health care law and get “less” in return.

‘Obamacare’ to cost $20,000 a Family?

‘Obamacare’ to cost $20,000 a Family?

Q: Did the IRS say that the cheapest health insurance plan under the federal health care law would cost $20,000 per family?
A: No. The IRS used $20,000 in a hypothetical example to illustrate how it will calculate the tax penalty for a family that fails to obtain health coverage as required by law. Treasury says the figure “is not an estimate of premiums.”

If You Like Your Plan …

After the Supreme Court’s ruling on the federal health care law, President Obama repeated his claim that for Americans “who already have health insurance, you will keep your health insurance.” But Obama can’t make that promise for everyone. At least a few million workers won’t keep their current plans.
Read more about Romney’s and President Obama’s false and misleading claims made after the high court’s ruling in our June 28 article, “Romney, Obama Uphold Health Care Falsehoods.”

A New Front in the ‘War on Women’

A New Front in the ‘War on Women’

Mitt Romney’s senior adviser Ed Gillespie distorted some economic facts on “Meet the Press” when he accused President Obama of creating a U.S. economy that is “hostile” to women.

Gillespie said the “number of single-mother families living in poverty” is now the highest “in recorded history.” But poverty statistics date only to 1959, and the poverty rate for single mothers — which is a better indicator than the total number — is still relatively low,

Truth-Twisting Tweets

Truth-Twisting Tweets

In tweets to her followers, Nevada Rep. Shelley Berkley claims her Republican opponent for U.S. Senate voted to “kill Medicare” and to “effectively ban contraception.” Both statements are untrue.
Sen. Dean Heller supported failed Republican legislation that would have substantially changed Medicare — in 2022 — to a program that subsidizes private insurance plans for seniors. But the entitlement would not have ended. Heller also voted for the so-called “Blunt amendment,” which would have allowed an employer to deny coverage of specific items or services contrary to the employer’s religious beliefs or moral convictions.