Luetkemeyer Votes to Slash Two Additional Costly Obamacare Slush Funds

Press Release

Continuing his efforts to repeal the administration's health-care law, U.S. Rep. Blaine Luetkemeyer (MO-9) voted to eliminate two additional slush funds included in the law. The health-care law in its current form will increase job-killing taxes and have a devastating impact on the quality of Americans' health care.

"The health-care law's thousands of new rules and regulations should not receive unlimited tax dollars. At a time when the health-care law is imposing unfunded mandates of at least $118 billion, the last thing fiscally strapped states need is a set of onerous new burdens from Washington -- the full cost of which we haven't even seen yet. " Luetkemeyer said. "The rules and regulations should be subject to annual appropriations and not given special treatment."

H.R. 1213 would repeal the mandatory funding provided to states to establish American Health Benefit Exchanges. Section 1311(a) of the health-care bill provides the Secretary of Health and Human Services an unlimited amount of funds for state-based exchange grants. This legislation would strike the unlimited direct appropriation and rescind any unobligated funds, reducing the deficit by $14 billion.

Additionally, H.R. 1214 would repeal the mandatory funding for school-based health center construction in the health-care law. Section 4101(a) of the health-care bill authorizes $200 million to support the construction of school-based health centers. A similar program is authorized for Congress to fund through the regular annual spending process. This bill would eliminate this subsection and rescind any unobligated funds. The health-care law prohibits the funds in this section from being used to staff the centers or provide health-care services. In addition, no funding was provided in the president's budget to provide health-care services.

Last month, Luetkemeyer voted in favor of H.R. 1217, a bill that would eliminate another slush fund in the health-care law. Under the health-care law, the Secretary of Health and Human Services would have the authority to spend funds in this account on any program or activity that he or she chooses without further congressional action. The proposed elimination of this unnecessary fund would save the government $17.75 billion in tax dollars over the next nine fiscal years.

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