EDITORIAL: Affordable Care Act on the ballot

We interrupt coverage of the ISIS crisis and the Ebola emergency to remind voters of the biggest reason why President Barack Obama’s approval rating is plummeting and Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid is at risk of losing his job: the Affordable Care Act.

The midterm elections are two weeks out — early voting in Clark County began Saturday. And the president recently provided a moment of clarity that brought groans from Democrats on ballots everywhere. “I am not on the ballot this fall. Michelle’s pretty happy about that,” the president said. “But make no mistake: These policies are on the ballot. Every single one of them.”

None will have a greater impact on voters than Obamacare. The next enrollment period for Obamacare-compliant health insurance plans begins Nov. 15. It was supposed to begin Oct. 15, but last November, recognizing what a disaster the ACA was, the administration pushed enrollment until after the elections, hoping to minimize midterm damage.

But that didn’t stop people from learning about increases in premiums and deductibles, or that their plans would be part of another wave of cancellations for not being ACA-compliant.

As reported Friday by Jed Graham of Investor’s Business Daily, rates for the cheapest bronze plans in the biggest cities in 15 states and Washington, D.C., will jump an average of 13.9 percent for 40-year-old nonsmokers earning 225 percent of the poverty level ($26,260). Elsewhere, the jump is much higher for that demographic, including 22 percent here in Las Vegas, 27 percent in Los Angeles and an eye-popping 64 percent in Seattle. Conversely, some of the higher-level plans would see a slight decrease — 0.8 percent — but for those who can’t afford a bronze plan, a silver plan is completely out of the question, anyway.

The Review-Journal’s Jennifer Robison reported Sunday that in Nevada, small groups and individuals who still hold pre-ACA plans will take a bath, with premium increases of 50 percent or more. Many people will see a doubling of their premiums. Equally if not more problematic, Ms. Robison noted, is that the out-of-pocket expenses of deductibles and copays could soar as much as 200 percent.

Businesses are reacting to the reality of Obamacare, too. Because of the rising costs of ACA compliance, Wal-Mart, the largest private employer in the country, announced earlier this month it was dropping coverage for 30,000 part-time workers.

Obamacare supporters rave about how great this legislation is, yet they’re pummeling Wal-Mart for allowing its part-time workers the opportunity to buy a health insurance policy on the federal or state exchanges. If Obamacare is so good, what’s the problem?

Or is the problem that it’s just not that good?

Obamacare is largely responsible for holding back economic growth and take-home pay, preventing people from earning more and keeping more of what they earn. The only way to fix that is to radically scale back or completely repeal Obamacare.

It’s definitely on the ballot. Vote accordingly.