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Boom: First union officially calls for the repeal of ObamaCare

by Erika Johnsen

posted at 6:41 pm on April 17, 2013 by Erika Johnsen

Labor unions largely came out swinging in favor of ObamaCare's passage in 2010, but many have been growing increasingly wary of ObamaCare's incoming provisions, fearing that the law's requirements will raise the costs of health plans for unions members and make them less competitive compared to non-unionized workers. On Tuesday, one such labor union that initially backed the health care overhaul becamethe first union to officially revoke their support for the law. Ouch.

Our Union and its members have supported President Obama and his Administration for both of his terms in office.

But regrettably, our concerns over certain provisions in the ACA have not been addressed, or in some instances, totally ignored. In the rush to achieve its passage, many of the Act's provisions were not fully conceived, resulting in unintended consequences that are inconsistent with the promise that those who were satisfied with their employer sponsored coverage could keep it.

These provisions jeopardize our multi-employer health plans, have the potential to cause a loss of work for our members, create an unfair bidding advantage for those contractors who do not provide health coverage to their workers, and in the worst case, may cause our members and their families to lose the benefits they currently enjoy as participants in multi-employer health plans.

For decades, our multi-employer health and welfare plans have provided the necessary medical coverage for our members and their families to protect them in times of illness and medical needs. This collaboration between labor and management has been a model of success that should be emulated rather than ignored. I refuse to remain silent, or idly watch as the ACA destroys those protections.

I am therefore calling for repeal or complete reform of the Affordable Care Act to protect our employers, our industry, and our most important asset: our members and their families.

That's gotta' sting. As Mary Katharine already pointed out today, ObamaCare author extraordinaire Sen. Max Baucus just vocalized his concern that ObamaCare's implementation might be turning into a "trainwreck" — and now even some organized labor groups are grumbling about their serious buyer's remorse on that matter.

It'll be interesting to see if other unions follow suit and officially retract their support of the law; in terms of potential campaign support withheld, that probably wouldn't do much for President Obama's Democratic ambitions for Congress in 2014, would it?