Senate Finance Committee Chairman Orrin Hatch (R-Utah) recently released a fact sheet detailing the ways in which the Obama Administration has altered Obamacare throughout its five-year existence without any consultation from Congress.
This research, conducted by the non-partisan Congressional Research Service, outlines several major instances where the law was changed without the input of Congress.
In October 2013, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) added a hardship exemption for individuals who waited until after Feb. 15, 2014, to join a health plan.
In July 2013, the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) had two separate delays that lasted one year because of the need to verify applicant information for health insurance exchanges.
In Nov. 2013, patients started to receive notices of cancellations because their current health plans did not meet the mandates of Obamacare; the Obama Administration created a transition policy urging insurers with cancellation notices to renew any noncompliant health plans for an additional policy year.
In November and December of 2013, there were so many problems with HealthCare.gov that HHS extended the enrollment deadline to Jan. 1, 2014.
The changes have been significant and have continued through February, when the IRS instated a transition relief for employers who have fewer than 50 full-time employees. Now employers, who previously would have been penalized for reimbursing medical expenses, will not receive the penalties until further assessments can be made. The current date is set for July 1.