Republicans set to target ‘Obamacare’ again

Washington: ‘Obamacare’ escaped unharmed from the government shutdown Republicans hoped would stop it, but just as quickly they have opened a new line of attack on President Barack Obama’s signature legislative achievement — one handed to them by the administration itself. 
    While Congress was arguing, Obama’s plan to expand coverage for the uninsured suffered a self-inflicted wound. 
    A computer system seemingly designed by gremlins gummed up the first open enrollment season. After nearly three weeks, it’s still not fixed. Republicans hope to ride that and other defects they see in the law into the 2014 congressional elections. Four Democratic senators are facing re-election for the first time since they voted for the Affordable Care Act, often referred to as “Obamacare,” and their defeat is critical to Republican aspirations for a Senate majority. 
    Democrats say that’s just more wishful thinking, if not an obsession. 
    Although Obama’s law remains divisive, only 29% of the public favours its complete repeal, according to a recent Gallup poll. The business-oriented wing of the Republican party wants to move on to other issues. 
Americans may be growing weary of the health care fight. “This is the law of the land at this point,” said Michael Weaver, a self-employed photographer from rural southern Illinois who’s been uninsured for about a year. 
    It took him a week-and-ahalf, but Weaver kept going back to the healthcare.gov site until he was able to open an account and apply for a tax credit that will reduce his premiums. He’s not finished because he hasn’t selected an insurance plan, but he’s been able to browse options. 
    It beats providing page after page of personal health information to insurance companies, Weaver said. AP Frustrated US prez wants glitches fixed President Barack Obama is frustrated by the problems in the rollout of his signature healthcare reform and the administration intends to fix them, US treasury secretary Jack Lew said on Sunday. Lew said the administration was determined to repair the technical glitches in the online insurance exchanges that are a central part of the programme known as “Obamacare” which launched on October 1. “I think that there’s no one more frustrated than the president at the difficulty in the website,” Lew said. He said the US Department of Health and Human Services “has got plans to fix this and it has to fix this. It has to be done right”. Fresh from the US budget battles, Obama on Monday will turn his attention to convincing the Americans that the healthcare programme can be fixed despite the significant rollout problems.