Testimony

Obamacare’s Individual Mandate is Economically Inefficient and Does Not Improve Access to Health Care

Chairman Buchanan, Ranking Member Lewis, and Members of the Committee, I am John R. Graham, Senior Fellow at the National Center for Policy Analysis, a nonprofit, nonpartisan public policy research organization dedicated to developing and promoting private alternatives to government regulation and control, solving problems by relying on the strength of the competitive, entrepreneurial private sector. I welcome the opportunity to share my views and look forward to your questions.

The individual mandate is Obamacare’s least popular feature. It was the subject of the 2012 lawsuit asserting Obamacare was unconstitutional: Never before had the federal government forced any resident to buy a good or service from a private business. The people lost that argument. Nevertheless, Republicans have pledged to eliminate the individual mandate. This commitment remains good politics. Perhaps counterintuitively, it is also good economics.

According to last November’s Kaiser Family Foundation Tracking Poll, only 35 percent of respondents have a favorable view of the individual mandate. The proportion drops to just 21 percent among Republicans, and just 16 percent among Trump supporters.

News Release

NCPA to Testify on ACA Individual Mandate before House Ways & Means Committee

Dallas, TX (1/23/17) – On January 24, 2017, Senior Fellow John R. Graham will testify on “Examining the Effectiveness of the Individual Mandate under the ACA” to the House Committee on Ways & Means. John Graham is one of the leading healthcare experts in the country and has written extensively on Obamacare and other healthcare policies. The theme of his testimony will be that Obamacare’s “Individual Mandate” is economically inefficient and does not improve access to healthcare. 

Other NCPA Experts

NCPA to Testify on ACA Individual Mandate before House Ways & Means Committee

On January 24, 2017, in the first meeting of the House Ways & Means Subcommittee on Oversight, NCPA Senior Fellow John R. Graham will testify on “Examining the Effectiveness of the Individual Mandate under the ACA” to the House Committee on Ways & Means. John Graham is one of the leading healthcare experts in the country and has written extensively on Obamacare and other healthcare policies. The theme of his testimony will be that Obamacare’s “Individual Mandate” is economically inefficient and does not improve access to healthcare.

News Release

NCPA Statement On Andy Puzder for Secretary of Labor

Dallas, TX (1/18/2017)— National Center for Policy Analysis President & CEO Jim Amos  released the following statement in response to the vicious libel that has been leveled against Andy Puzder, Chief Executive of CKE Restaurants, which owns Hardees’, Carl’s Jr., Green Burrito and Red Burrito restaurant brands, a franchise system with 3,750 franchised or company-operated restaurants in 44 states and 40 foreign countries and U.S. locations, and a member of the IFA Board of Directors.

Economy / Issue Briefs

How the Economy Affects Major Asset Classes

Asset performance patterns are not always easy to explain, even over longer time frames. For instance, stock and bond prices are positively correlated, but they are also negatively correlated at various times. Asset prices also move differently in periods of uncertainty than in quieter times.

National Defense / News Release

NCPA Statement on Expected Confirmation of Mike Pompeo for CIA Director

Representative Mike Pompeo, President-elect Trump’s nominee to lead the CIA will have a tough task ahead in rebuilding the credibility of one of the most revered institution in the American government. The Obama administration’s fecklessness and short-term thinking has so undermined the integrity of the intelligence community that Pompeo will likely spend an inordinate amount of time having to rebuild trust and relationships, both stateside and abroad, rather than immediately improving operational readiness.

Health / Issue Briefs

How to Make New Drugs More Affordable

Over the past several years, a few high-priced drugs have elevated drug spending to a political issue. Patients are more sensitive to rising costs due to increasing deductibles and, because consumers pay more of their drug costs, pharmaceutical companies are less able to pass on high prices without anyone noticing.

Economy / Special Publications

Economics of the 2016-2017 Debate Topic: U.S. Relations with China, Mixing Cooperation with Competition

There is no more important bilateral relationship than that between the United States and China. Yet the Congressional Research Service warns that ties have “become increasingly complex and often fraught with tension.” Relations appear likely to become even more fractious with the election of Donald Trump as president. Every four years the People’s Republic of China (PRC) becomes a presidential election issue, but Americans deserve a better explanation of the importance of U.S.-China political and economic relations than candidates’ sound-bytes.

Issue Briefs / Welfare

The American Dream is Alive and Well – Among Orphanage Alumni!

Over the last several years, national media have reported discouraging news on the survival of the American Dream. One study found that a sizable majority — just under 60 percent — of Americans have lost hope that they will achieve the American Dream. They are even more discouraged about their children’s futures. A recent study suggests a cause: The percentage of Americans earning more than their parents did at the same age has plunged since the 1970s.

National Security / Special Publications

Antiquities and Conflict: Changing Military Strategy

Once treated as purely a criminal problem, the looting and sale of illicit antiquities has recently become matter of national security. The frequent contact between the U.S. military and non-state actors, namely Islamic terrorist organizations, demands a doctrinal change in how military strategy accounts for cultural heritage. The U.S. government and the Department of Defense should give greater precedence to the protection of movable cultural heritage in wartime in order to diminish the capabilities of terrorist organizations who remain the preeminent threat to the safety and security of the United States.

Economy / Issue Briefs

Proposed Payday Lending Rule Will Hurt Lower-Income Consumers

The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau is a federal agency created by the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act to protect consumers from “unfair, deceptive, or abusive practices” by financial institutions. On June 2, 2016, the CFPB proposed federal regulations for the short-term loan industry.

Issue Briefs / National Security

The Economics of NATO Expansion

In his January 1997 State of the Union speech, President Bill Clinton lauded the
expansion of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) into Central and East
Europe, saying America’s “first task is to help to build…an undivided, democratic Europe.” However, the president also expressed a desire to expand NATO in the hope of fostering seamless military cooperation across Europe.

Other Events

The Future of Digital Enterprise

The Future of Digital Enterprise: Hedging Risks, Mitigating Threats and Why it Matters WHEN:     November 30, 2016 WHERE:   University of Dallas                …

Jim Amos

NCPA Reaction to Second Presidential Debate

The second presidential debate highlighted the cavernous differences between the two candidates. Certainly we heard more of the same with regard to personal attacks, but a more controlled Donald Trump rivaled Hillary Clinton on policy expectations, bringing the battle over moral superiority to a draw.