Midterm elections will be here this week, and the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act is still on the minds of voters and candidates.
According to Kaiser Family Foundation, Democrats and Republicans are using PPACA to tell their stories in very different ways. Of GOP health care ads, 84 percent mentioned PPACA — and every ad cast the law in a negative light. Meanwhile, just 15 percent of Democratic ads on health care issues included messaging on the law.
So the big question is: What will happen to PPACA if Republicans take control of the Senate after next week's election?
We asked some industry experts to weigh in and predict PPACA's fate. Here's what they said.
Ed Oravetz
President, founder of Visicor; Houston
Short answer is, not much. Unlike many, I don't anticipate sweeping changes to the law at this point. My hopes would be the elimination of the employer mandate but I don't see that as a likely outcome. I would expect adjustments to the law in areas such as the Cadillac tax, the non-discrimination rules, and hopefully the employer reporting requirements with, again, the overall hope they eliminate the employer mandate (in a perfect world).
James Slotnick
Assistant vice president at Sun Life Financial; Boston
It is almost easier to answer what won't happen — a full repeal of the law. What will be interesting to see is how a new Republican majority would work to "chip away" at the law. For example, if the government collects less than is needed to pay out for risk corridor payments, we could see a Republican Senate attempt to block the needed risk corridor funding.
James will be hosting a webinar about this topic called, "Election 2014: The Midterm Election, the ACA, and You," Nov. 5, from 2-3 p.m. EST. Register here.
Erick Gustafson
Head of government relations for Mercer parent, Marsh & McLennan Cos. Inc.; Washington, D.C.
