The Health and Human Services Department (HHS) has failed to comply with almost half of its legal deadlines for the healthcare reform law, according to a new report from the American Action Forum, a center-right advocacy group.
HHS has missed 20 of its 42 deadlines in the two-plus years that the Affordable Care Act has been in place, according to the study,
The Hill reports.
The biggest missed deadlines pertain to the Community Living Assistance Services and Supports program, which was supposed to offer for long-term care, such as nursing homes. The HHS chose not to implement the program, saying it couldn’t function as the law was written.
Another missed deadline involves implementing rules that make insurance companies give plain-English descriptions of their plans. HHS didn’t provide its first proposals for the program until months after the work was supposed to be completed, thanks largely to delays by a group of state advisers.
HHS has generally met its deadlines for major parts of the reform, such as the creation of state insurance exchanges. But the exchanges have been delayed, as some Republican governors decline to implement any of Obamacare until the Supreme Court rules on whether the law is constitutional.
Not surprisingly, HHS defends its work. “The Administration has met and beaten deadlines required by the Affordable Care Act," an HHS spokesman said in a statement.
"As a result, 2.5 million young adults have been able stay on their parents’ health insurance, over 5.1 million seniors who have fallen into the Medicare Part D donut hole have seen prescription drug cost relief, uninsured Americans with pre-existing conditions are starting to get life-saving coverage, we have the nation’s strongest Patient’s Bill of Rights in place, and some of the worst insurance industry practices are coming to an end.”
© 2013 Newsmax. All rights reserved.