An upcoming sharp increase nationwide in health insurance rates has given Republicans in key congressional races needed ammunition to bash Obamacare and help fend off Democratic attempts to take control of the Senate, The Washington Post reports.
Democrats need to pick up four seats to retake the majority in the Senate if Hillary Clinton wins the election.
While Republicans have consistently slammed the Affordable Care Act since it passed in 2010 on the general principle that it is a needless intrusion of the federal government, the criticism this time comes on the local level in key states where voters will have to pay significantly more for their health care just before Election Day.
An analysis by the McKinsey Center for U.S. Health System Reform shows an average increase of 11 percent in national premiums for plans that go on sale in November before voters go to the polls.
In addition to the rate hikes, national insurers have cited financial losses to drastically cut back their participation in the exchanges.
U.S. Chamber of Commerce national political director Rob Engstrom told the Post, "We believe local beats national every day of the week. The impacts of Obamacare, in many places across the country, they are deeply personal. People feel betrayed. They were promised they could keep their doctor. They were promised they could keep their coverage . . . The opposite has occurred."
One example where the health care issue is particularly pressing is in Arizona, where Republican Sen. John McCain has slammed his Democratic opponent, Rep. Ann Kirkpatrick, for her support of Obamacare.
Seven insurers no longer provide policies in the state's largest county, leaving only one company selling insurance to those not covered by employer insurance, Medicare or Medicaid.
Advertisements in Arizona hammer away at the point and Republicans are expected to boost their spending on such ads in other campaigns nationwide.
As a sign of how much the issue resonates with the GOP base, Republican candidates in close races have been quick to bring up Obamacare while Democrats mainly talked about it only if necessary.
Democrats are trying to fight back on the issue by saying Republicans criticize the Affordable Care Act without proposing a specific solution that is affordable, the Post reports.
The Democrats also try to downplay the scope of the trouble by pointing out that the 13 million American enrolled through the problematic exchanges are only one-tenth the number who have either employer-provided insurance or are enrolled in Medicaid.
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