Chris
02-04-2018, 05:17 PM
The job of Congress is to represent the people and put the nation’s best interests first. It looks like Maxine Waters has a very different objective: Funnel as much taxpayer money to leftist cronies as possible.
According to Judicial Watch, the longtime liberal lawmaker has introduced a bill that moves over a billion dollars to “Obamacare navigators,” who conveniently happen to almost always be leftist organizations.
“A fraud-infested Obamacare ‘outreach’ program will get an astounding $1.2 billion from American taxpayers if legislation introduced by a veteran congresswoman becomes law,” the watchdog group explained.
“The preposterous measure, introduced by California Democrat Maxine Waters a few week ago, aims to recruit customers for the health insurance exchanges set up under Obama’s disastrous healthcare overhaul,” Judicial Watch continued.
Waters seems desperate to prop up Obamacare as a source of money for liberal groups, but she already has a shaky record of re-directing federal money to shady projects.
TRENDING: Report: When McCabe Messed Up, Trump Called Him and Insulted His Wife
“The 14-term congresswoman, investigated by the House Ethics Committee for steering federal funds to her husband’s failing Massachusetts bank, crafted the law because the Trump administration slashed Obamacare outreach funding by more than 90%.”
Her proposed bill is officially called the “ACA OUTREACH Act,” and would direct $300 million annually for the next four years from Health and Human Services to “navigators,” who are supposed to help “minority and underserved” people understand the health insurance process.
That may sound like a noble goal — after all, buying health insurance can be daunting — but the problem is that those “navigators” have a history of being groups with clear far-left agendas.
“The Obamacare navigator program was rife with fraud and corruption and Judicial Watch sued HHS back in 2014 to obtain records that the agency refused to provide under the Freedom of Information Act,” the watchdog group explained.
“In 2013, the Obama administration gave dozens of leftists organizations a whopping $67 million to help people ‘navigate’ health insurance exchanges that weren’t even fully established.” Nice work if you can get it.
One look at the actual groups receiving millions in “navigator” grants makes it painfully obvious that this is a liberal money transfer scheme.
They include: Campesinos Sin Fronteras or “Farmers without Borders,” a pro-Mexican immigration group. Planned Parenthood branches in three states. The Arab Community Center in Michigan. The Black Chamber of Commerce.
“Some of the navigator money went to a labor front group called Restaurant Opportunities Center of New York headed by an illegal immigrant activist named Maria Marroquin,” Judicial Watch elaborated.
“The group received navigator funds shortly after Marroquin, an illegal alien from Peru, had been arrested for participating in disruptive demonstrations protesting the deportation of fellow undocumented immigrants and demanding amnesty.”
Is that where you believe over a billion dollars in taxpayer money should be going? The Trump administration certainly doesn’t think so, which is why they cut the fraud-filled Obamacare navigator program by 90 percent. If Waters gets her way, that money would begin flowing back to her political allies on the left.
This kind of waste and abuse is exactly why the “D.C. swamp” needs to be drained. It’s time to call out these cronies and let 14-term bureaucrats like Waters know that their games won’t be tolerated any more.
https://conservativetribune.com/waters-direct-billions-to-libs/
A fraud-infested Obamacare “outreach” program will get an astounding $1.2 billion from American taxpayers if legislation introduced by a veteran congresswoman becomes law. The preposterous measure, introduced by California Democrat Maxine Waters a few week ago, aims to recruit customers for the health insurance exchanges set up under Obama’s disastrous healthcare overhaul. The 14-term congresswoman, investigated by the House Ethics Committee for steering federal funds to her husband’s failing Massachusetts bank, crafted the law because the Trump administration slashed Obamacare outreach funding by more than 90%.
“Our health care system is under attack by a president, administration, and Republican-controlled Congress that – after numerous failed attempts to repeal Obamacare – are sabotaging it for political gain,” Waters said in a statement. “My legislation seeks to reverse their vindictive efforts to undermine and de-stabilize our health care system by ensuring that all consumers are provided with the information they need to make timely and well-informed decisions when purchasing health coverage through the federal and state-run marketplaces.” The bill, Affordable Care Act (ACA) Outreach for the Uninsured, Transformative Recruitment, and Enrollment Action for Compassionate Healthcare (ACA OUTREACH) Act, is cosponsored by 36 other lawmakers. If it passes, the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) would dole out $300 million annually through 2021 for “navigator” grants. Minority and underserved communities would be especially targeted, according to language in the bill’s text.
The Obamacare navigator program was rife with fraud and corruption and Judicial Watch sued HHS back in 2014 to obtain records that the agency refused to provide under the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA). In 2013, the Obama administration gave dozens of leftists organizations a whopping $67 million to help people “navigate” health insurance exchanges that weren’t even fully established. In a “culturally competent manner” the so-called navigators were tasked with helping people shop for and enroll in plans that would eventually be available on the federal government market places. The money was divided between 105 mostly leftist groups that assisted and recruited the uninsured to sign up for coverage and understand their options.
Here are a few examples of the community organizations that received navigator grants from the government; an Arizona nonprofit called “Campesinos Sin Fronteras” that provides services to farm workers and low-income Hispanics; a south Florida legal group that provided navigators in “racially, ethnically, linguistically, culturally and socioeconomically diverse” communities; three Planned Parenthood branches—in Iowa, Montana and New Hampshire—got a combined $655,000 to serve as navigators. Others include; the Arab Community Center in Michigan, which got nearly $300,000 to reach out to and engage uninsured community members through “multicultural” media. A Black Chamber of Commerce in South Carolina received north of $230,000 to “provide outreach around new coverage options” and a Hispanic aging group in Texas got over $646,000 help members that are “socially isolated due to cultural and linguistic differences.”
Some of the navigator money went to a labor front group called Restaurant Opportunities Center of New York headed by an illegal immigrant activist named Maria Marroquin. The group received navigator funds shortly after Marroquin, an illegal alien from Peru, had been arrested for participating in disruptive demonstrations protesting the deportation of fellow undocumented immigrants and demanding amnesty.
Besides the outrage of hiring an illegal immigrant to promote a U.S. government program, it’s equally disturbing to know that navigators have access to the sensitive personal information of healthcare enrollees. This includes Social Security numbers, which can be used for identity theft, a rampant crime among illegal alien populations seeking to establish residency and land jobs in the U.S.
Navigator funds also went to a nonprofit (Association of Community Organizations for Reform Now (ACORN), with such a huge history of corruption that Congress issued a federal funding ban. As part of a broader investigation into ACORN Judicial Watch obtained records showing that HHS violated the congressional ACORN funding ban by awarding a Louisiana nonprofit called Southern United Neighborhoods (SUN) a $1.3 million Obamacare navigator grant to recruit customers. Headquartered in New Orleans, SUN is dedicated to combating poverty, discrimination and community deterioration that keep low-income people from taking advantage of their rights and opportunities, according to its website.
https://www.judicialwatch.org/blog/2018/02/obamacare-recruiters-get-1-2-billion-proposed-law/
H. R. 4784
To amend the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act to provide funding for American Health Benefit Exchanges navigator programs and outreach and promotional activities.
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
January 11, 2018
Ms. Maxine Waters of California (for herself, Mr. Grijalva, Mr. Pocan, Ms. Schakowsky, Ms. Kelly of Illinois, Ms. Norton, Mr. Raskin, Mr. Carson of Indiana, Ms. Jackson Lee, Mr. Danny K. Davis of Illinois, Mr. Garamendi, Ms. Velázquez, Ms. Blunt Rochester, Mrs. Demings, Mr. Hastings, Mrs. Watson Coleman, Mr. Serrano, Ms. Roybal-Allard, Ms. Wilson of Florida, Mr. Cohen, Mr. Butterfield, Mr. Meeks, Mr. David Scott of Georgia, Mr. Ellison, Mrs. Carolyn B. Maloney of New York, Ms. Lee, Ms. Michelle Lujan Grisham of New Mexico, Mr. McGovern, Ms. Clarke of New York, Mr. Espaillat, Ms. Barragán, Ms. Jayapal, Mr. Payne, Mr. Lowenthal, and Mr. Gonzalez of Texas) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Energy and Commerce
A BILL
To amend the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act to provide funding for American Health Benefit Exchanges navigator programs and outreach and promotional activities.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States of America in Congress assembled,
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.
This Act may be cited as the “Affordable Care Act Outreach for the Uninsured, Transformative Recruitment, and Enrollment Action for Compassionate Healthcare Act of 2018” or the “ACA OUTREACH Act”.
SEC. 2. FUNDING AMERICAN HEALTH BENEFIT EXCHANGES NAVIGATOR PROGRAMS AND OUTREACH AND PROMOTIONAL ACTIVITIES.
(a) Funding For Navigator Program.—Section 1311(i) of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (42 U.S.C. 18031(i)) is amended by adding at the end the following new paragraph:
“(7) APPROPRIATIONS.—Out of any funds in the Treasury not otherwise appropriated, there is appropriated to the Secretary of Health and Human Services $100,000,000 for each of fiscal years 2018 through 2021 for navigator programs under this subsection.”.
(b) Federal Exchanges Outreach And Promotional Activities.—Section 1321(c) of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (42 U.S.C. 18041(c)) is amended by adding at the end the following new paragraph:
“(3) OUTREACH AND PROMOTIONAL ACTIVITIES.—
“(A) IN GENERAL.—In the case of an Exchange established or operated by the Secretary pursuant to this subsection, the Secretary may carry out outreach and promotional activities as necessary and appropriate for the successful operation of such Exchange, including for purposes of informing potential enrollees in qualified health plans offered through the Exchange of the availability of coverage under such plans and financial assistance for coverage under such plans.
“(B) DIVERSE CONSTITUENCIES.—The Secretary shall carry out any outreach and promotional activities under this paragraph in a manner that reaches diverse constituencies, including minority, rural, and underserved communities; people with disabilities; young adults; and individuals who are likely to be uninsured.
“(C) FUNDING.—Out of any funds in the Treasury not otherwise appropriated, there is appropriated to the Secretary of Health and Human Services $100,000,000 for each of fiscal years 2018 through 2021 to carry out this paragraph.”.
(c) State Grants For State-Run Exchanges Outreach And Promotional Activities.—Section 1311 of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (42 U.S.C. 18031) is amended by adding at the end the following new subsection:
“(l) State-Run Exchanges Outreach And Promotional Activities.—
“(1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall carry out a grant program under which the Secretary awards grants to States that are electing States under section 1321(b) that have established Exchanges. Each such grant awarded to such a State that has established an Exchange shall be used by such Exchange for purposes of outreach and promotional activities as necessary and appropriate for the successful operation of the Exchange, including for purposes of informing potential enrollees in qualified health plans offered through the Exchange of the availability of coverage under such plans and financial assistance for coverage under such plans.
“(2) ELIGIBILITY.—
“(A) APPLICATION.—To be eligible for a grant under paragraph (1), a State described in such paragraph shall submit an application to the Secretary at such time, in such manner, and containing such information as specified by the Secretary. In establishing the process for States to apply for such grants, the Secretary shall ensure that applications are processed in a timely manner.
“(B) DIVERSE CONSTITUENCIES.—To be eligible for a grant under paragraph (1), a State described in such paragraph shall provide such assurances as are required by the Secretary to ensure that the Exchange established by such State carries out outreach and promotional activities under such grant in a manner that reaches diverse constituencies, including minority, rural, and underserved communities; people with disabilities; young adults; and individuals who are likely to be uninsured.
“(3) FUNDING.—Out of any funds in the Treasury not otherwise appropriated, there is appropriated to the Secretary of Health and Human Services $100,000,000 for each of fiscal years 2018 through 2021 to carry out this subsection.”.
https://www.congress.gov/bill/115th-congress/house-bill/4784/text?q=%7B"search"%3A%5B"HR4784"%5D%7D
According to Judicial Watch, the longtime liberal lawmaker has introduced a bill that moves over a billion dollars to “Obamacare navigators,” who conveniently happen to almost always be leftist organizations.
“A fraud-infested Obamacare ‘outreach’ program will get an astounding $1.2 billion from American taxpayers if legislation introduced by a veteran congresswoman becomes law,” the watchdog group explained.
“The preposterous measure, introduced by California Democrat Maxine Waters a few week ago, aims to recruit customers for the health insurance exchanges set up under Obama’s disastrous healthcare overhaul,” Judicial Watch continued.
Waters seems desperate to prop up Obamacare as a source of money for liberal groups, but she already has a shaky record of re-directing federal money to shady projects.
TRENDING: Report: When McCabe Messed Up, Trump Called Him and Insulted His Wife
“The 14-term congresswoman, investigated by the House Ethics Committee for steering federal funds to her husband’s failing Massachusetts bank, crafted the law because the Trump administration slashed Obamacare outreach funding by more than 90%.”
Her proposed bill is officially called the “ACA OUTREACH Act,” and would direct $300 million annually for the next four years from Health and Human Services to “navigators,” who are supposed to help “minority and underserved” people understand the health insurance process.
That may sound like a noble goal — after all, buying health insurance can be daunting — but the problem is that those “navigators” have a history of being groups with clear far-left agendas.
“The Obamacare navigator program was rife with fraud and corruption and Judicial Watch sued HHS back in 2014 to obtain records that the agency refused to provide under the Freedom of Information Act,” the watchdog group explained.
“In 2013, the Obama administration gave dozens of leftists organizations a whopping $67 million to help people ‘navigate’ health insurance exchanges that weren’t even fully established.” Nice work if you can get it.
One look at the actual groups receiving millions in “navigator” grants makes it painfully obvious that this is a liberal money transfer scheme.
They include: Campesinos Sin Fronteras or “Farmers without Borders,” a pro-Mexican immigration group. Planned Parenthood branches in three states. The Arab Community Center in Michigan. The Black Chamber of Commerce.
“Some of the navigator money went to a labor front group called Restaurant Opportunities Center of New York headed by an illegal immigrant activist named Maria Marroquin,” Judicial Watch elaborated.
“The group received navigator funds shortly after Marroquin, an illegal alien from Peru, had been arrested for participating in disruptive demonstrations protesting the deportation of fellow undocumented immigrants and demanding amnesty.”
Is that where you believe over a billion dollars in taxpayer money should be going? The Trump administration certainly doesn’t think so, which is why they cut the fraud-filled Obamacare navigator program by 90 percent. If Waters gets her way, that money would begin flowing back to her political allies on the left.
This kind of waste and abuse is exactly why the “D.C. swamp” needs to be drained. It’s time to call out these cronies and let 14-term bureaucrats like Waters know that their games won’t be tolerated any more.
https://conservativetribune.com/waters-direct-billions-to-libs/
A fraud-infested Obamacare “outreach” program will get an astounding $1.2 billion from American taxpayers if legislation introduced by a veteran congresswoman becomes law. The preposterous measure, introduced by California Democrat Maxine Waters a few week ago, aims to recruit customers for the health insurance exchanges set up under Obama’s disastrous healthcare overhaul. The 14-term congresswoman, investigated by the House Ethics Committee for steering federal funds to her husband’s failing Massachusetts bank, crafted the law because the Trump administration slashed Obamacare outreach funding by more than 90%.
“Our health care system is under attack by a president, administration, and Republican-controlled Congress that – after numerous failed attempts to repeal Obamacare – are sabotaging it for political gain,” Waters said in a statement. “My legislation seeks to reverse their vindictive efforts to undermine and de-stabilize our health care system by ensuring that all consumers are provided with the information they need to make timely and well-informed decisions when purchasing health coverage through the federal and state-run marketplaces.” The bill, Affordable Care Act (ACA) Outreach for the Uninsured, Transformative Recruitment, and Enrollment Action for Compassionate Healthcare (ACA OUTREACH) Act, is cosponsored by 36 other lawmakers. If it passes, the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) would dole out $300 million annually through 2021 for “navigator” grants. Minority and underserved communities would be especially targeted, according to language in the bill’s text.
The Obamacare navigator program was rife with fraud and corruption and Judicial Watch sued HHS back in 2014 to obtain records that the agency refused to provide under the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA). In 2013, the Obama administration gave dozens of leftists organizations a whopping $67 million to help people “navigate” health insurance exchanges that weren’t even fully established. In a “culturally competent manner” the so-called navigators were tasked with helping people shop for and enroll in plans that would eventually be available on the federal government market places. The money was divided between 105 mostly leftist groups that assisted and recruited the uninsured to sign up for coverage and understand their options.
Here are a few examples of the community organizations that received navigator grants from the government; an Arizona nonprofit called “Campesinos Sin Fronteras” that provides services to farm workers and low-income Hispanics; a south Florida legal group that provided navigators in “racially, ethnically, linguistically, culturally and socioeconomically diverse” communities; three Planned Parenthood branches—in Iowa, Montana and New Hampshire—got a combined $655,000 to serve as navigators. Others include; the Arab Community Center in Michigan, which got nearly $300,000 to reach out to and engage uninsured community members through “multicultural” media. A Black Chamber of Commerce in South Carolina received north of $230,000 to “provide outreach around new coverage options” and a Hispanic aging group in Texas got over $646,000 help members that are “socially isolated due to cultural and linguistic differences.”
Some of the navigator money went to a labor front group called Restaurant Opportunities Center of New York headed by an illegal immigrant activist named Maria Marroquin. The group received navigator funds shortly after Marroquin, an illegal alien from Peru, had been arrested for participating in disruptive demonstrations protesting the deportation of fellow undocumented immigrants and demanding amnesty.
Besides the outrage of hiring an illegal immigrant to promote a U.S. government program, it’s equally disturbing to know that navigators have access to the sensitive personal information of healthcare enrollees. This includes Social Security numbers, which can be used for identity theft, a rampant crime among illegal alien populations seeking to establish residency and land jobs in the U.S.
Navigator funds also went to a nonprofit (Association of Community Organizations for Reform Now (ACORN), with such a huge history of corruption that Congress issued a federal funding ban. As part of a broader investigation into ACORN Judicial Watch obtained records showing that HHS violated the congressional ACORN funding ban by awarding a Louisiana nonprofit called Southern United Neighborhoods (SUN) a $1.3 million Obamacare navigator grant to recruit customers. Headquartered in New Orleans, SUN is dedicated to combating poverty, discrimination and community deterioration that keep low-income people from taking advantage of their rights and opportunities, according to its website.
https://www.judicialwatch.org/blog/2018/02/obamacare-recruiters-get-1-2-billion-proposed-law/
H. R. 4784
To amend the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act to provide funding for American Health Benefit Exchanges navigator programs and outreach and promotional activities.
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
January 11, 2018
Ms. Maxine Waters of California (for herself, Mr. Grijalva, Mr. Pocan, Ms. Schakowsky, Ms. Kelly of Illinois, Ms. Norton, Mr. Raskin, Mr. Carson of Indiana, Ms. Jackson Lee, Mr. Danny K. Davis of Illinois, Mr. Garamendi, Ms. Velázquez, Ms. Blunt Rochester, Mrs. Demings, Mr. Hastings, Mrs. Watson Coleman, Mr. Serrano, Ms. Roybal-Allard, Ms. Wilson of Florida, Mr. Cohen, Mr. Butterfield, Mr. Meeks, Mr. David Scott of Georgia, Mr. Ellison, Mrs. Carolyn B. Maloney of New York, Ms. Lee, Ms. Michelle Lujan Grisham of New Mexico, Mr. McGovern, Ms. Clarke of New York, Mr. Espaillat, Ms. Barragán, Ms. Jayapal, Mr. Payne, Mr. Lowenthal, and Mr. Gonzalez of Texas) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Energy and Commerce
A BILL
To amend the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act to provide funding for American Health Benefit Exchanges navigator programs and outreach and promotional activities.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States of America in Congress assembled,
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.
This Act may be cited as the “Affordable Care Act Outreach for the Uninsured, Transformative Recruitment, and Enrollment Action for Compassionate Healthcare Act of 2018” or the “ACA OUTREACH Act”.
SEC. 2. FUNDING AMERICAN HEALTH BENEFIT EXCHANGES NAVIGATOR PROGRAMS AND OUTREACH AND PROMOTIONAL ACTIVITIES.
(a) Funding For Navigator Program.—Section 1311(i) of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (42 U.S.C. 18031(i)) is amended by adding at the end the following new paragraph:
“(7) APPROPRIATIONS.—Out of any funds in the Treasury not otherwise appropriated, there is appropriated to the Secretary of Health and Human Services $100,000,000 for each of fiscal years 2018 through 2021 for navigator programs under this subsection.”.
(b) Federal Exchanges Outreach And Promotional Activities.—Section 1321(c) of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (42 U.S.C. 18041(c)) is amended by adding at the end the following new paragraph:
“(3) OUTREACH AND PROMOTIONAL ACTIVITIES.—
“(A) IN GENERAL.—In the case of an Exchange established or operated by the Secretary pursuant to this subsection, the Secretary may carry out outreach and promotional activities as necessary and appropriate for the successful operation of such Exchange, including for purposes of informing potential enrollees in qualified health plans offered through the Exchange of the availability of coverage under such plans and financial assistance for coverage under such plans.
“(B) DIVERSE CONSTITUENCIES.—The Secretary shall carry out any outreach and promotional activities under this paragraph in a manner that reaches diverse constituencies, including minority, rural, and underserved communities; people with disabilities; young adults; and individuals who are likely to be uninsured.
“(C) FUNDING.—Out of any funds in the Treasury not otherwise appropriated, there is appropriated to the Secretary of Health and Human Services $100,000,000 for each of fiscal years 2018 through 2021 to carry out this paragraph.”.
(c) State Grants For State-Run Exchanges Outreach And Promotional Activities.—Section 1311 of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (42 U.S.C. 18031) is amended by adding at the end the following new subsection:
“(l) State-Run Exchanges Outreach And Promotional Activities.—
“(1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall carry out a grant program under which the Secretary awards grants to States that are electing States under section 1321(b) that have established Exchanges. Each such grant awarded to such a State that has established an Exchange shall be used by such Exchange for purposes of outreach and promotional activities as necessary and appropriate for the successful operation of the Exchange, including for purposes of informing potential enrollees in qualified health plans offered through the Exchange of the availability of coverage under such plans and financial assistance for coverage under such plans.
“(2) ELIGIBILITY.—
“(A) APPLICATION.—To be eligible for a grant under paragraph (1), a State described in such paragraph shall submit an application to the Secretary at such time, in such manner, and containing such information as specified by the Secretary. In establishing the process for States to apply for such grants, the Secretary shall ensure that applications are processed in a timely manner.
“(B) DIVERSE CONSTITUENCIES.—To be eligible for a grant under paragraph (1), a State described in such paragraph shall provide such assurances as are required by the Secretary to ensure that the Exchange established by such State carries out outreach and promotional activities under such grant in a manner that reaches diverse constituencies, including minority, rural, and underserved communities; people with disabilities; young adults; and individuals who are likely to be uninsured.
“(3) FUNDING.—Out of any funds in the Treasury not otherwise appropriated, there is appropriated to the Secretary of Health and Human Services $100,000,000 for each of fiscal years 2018 through 2021 to carry out this subsection.”.
https://www.congress.gov/bill/115th-congress/house-bill/4784/text?q=%7B"search"%3A%5B"HR4784"%5D%7D