January 18, 2011
The Honorable John Boehner The Honorable Harry Reid
Speaker of the House Senate Majority Leader
Washington, DC 20515 Washington, DC 20515
The Honorable Nancy Pelosi The Honorable Mitch McConnell
House Minority Leader Senate Minority Leader
Washington, DC 20515 Washington, DC 20515
Dear Speaker Boehner, Minority Leader Pelosi, Majority Leader Reid, and Minority Leader McConnell:
To promote job growth and help to restore the federal government to fiscal balance, we, the undersigned, feel that it would be beneficial to repeal and replace the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (P.L. 111-148). Too many Americans remain unemployed and the United States faces a daunting budgetary outlook. We believe the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act is a threat to U.S. businesses and will place a crushing debt burden on future generations of Americans.
A Barrier to Job Growth: The Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act contains expensive mandates and penalties that create major barriers to stronger job growth. The mandates will compete for the scarce business resources used for hiring and firm expansion. The law also levies roughly $500 billion in new taxes that will enter the supply chain for medical services, raising the cost of medical services. At the same time that businesses juggle the potential for higher interest rates or higher taxes, these medical costs will translate to higher insurance premiums, further increasing the cost of operating a business in the United States.
A Massive Spending Increase and a Crushing Debt Burden: The Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act is fiscally dangerous at a moment when the United States is already facing a sea of red ink. It creates a massive new entitlement at a time when the budget is already buckling under the weight of existing entitlements. At a minimum, it will add $1 trillion to government spending over the next decade. Assertions that these costs are paid for are based on omitted costs, budgetary gimmicks, shifted premiums from other entitlements, and unsustainable spending cuts and revenue increases. A more comprehensive and realistic projection suggests that the Affordable Care Act could potentially raise the federal budget deficit by more than $500 billion during the first ten years and by nearly $1.5 trillion in the following decade.
The Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act does not constitute real health care reform. The first step is to remove barriers to stronger job growth and to help restore fiscal balance to the nation’s budget by protecting taxpayers, American business, seniors, families, workers, and health care consumers from the damage that the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act will cause.
Congress should start with a clean sheet of paper and adopt initiatives that would encourage providers to offer higher-quality care at lower costs; reduce the cost pressures that threaten to bankrupt Medicare and Medicaid; and give every American access to more options for quality insurance.
Respectfully,
[Affiliations shown for purposes of identification and do not constitute institutional endorsement.]
Douglas Holtz-Eakin
President, American Action Forum
Former Director, Congressional Budget Office (CBO)
June O’Neill
Professor of Economics, Baruch College
Former Director, Congressional Budget Office (CBO)
First Chair, Board of Scientific Counselors, National Center for Health Statistics
Joseph Antos
Wilson H. Taylor Scholar in Health Care and Retirement Policy American Enterprise Institute
Former Assistant Director, Congressional Budget Office (CBO)
Arlene Holen
Senior Fellow, Technology Policy Institute Former Associate Director Congressional Budget Office (CBO)
Former Associate Director White House Office of Management and Budget (OMB)
Brian S. Wesbury
Chief Economist, First Trust Portfolios LP
Former Chief Economist, Joint Economic Committee of the US Congress
Arthur B. Laffer
Chairman, Laffer Associates
First Chief Economist, Office of Management and Budget (OMB)
Former Member, Economic Policy Advisory Board
Jim Capretta
Fellow, Ethics and Public Policy Center
Former Associate Director, White House Office of Management and Budget (OMB)
James D. Mietus, Ph.D.
Independent Economist and Policy Adviser
Former Economist, Office of Management and Budget (OMB)
Michael Boskin
Professor of Economics, Stanford University
Former Chairman, White House Council of Economic Advisers (CEA)
William Niskanen
Former Action Chairman and Member, White House Council of Economic Advisers (CEA)
Chairman Emeritus, Cato Institute
Earl L. Grinols
Distinguished Professor of Economics, Baylor University Former Senior Economist, White House Council of Economic Advisers (CEA)
Mark H. Showalter
Professor of Economics, Brigham Young University
Former Senior Economist, White House Council of Economic Advisers (CEA)
Scott Baier
Associate Professor of Economics, Clemson University
Former Senior Economist, White House Council of Economic Advisers (CEA)
Larry Lindsey
President, The Lindsey Group
Former Director, National Economic Council (NEC)
Todd G. Buchholz
Managing Director, Two Oceans Management
Former Senior Economic Adviser, The White House
Fellow, Cambridge University
Edward C. Prescott
W.P. Carey Chaired Professor of Economics, Arizona State University
Economist, Federal Reserve Bank of Minneapolis
Nobel Laureate in Economics
William Poole
Distinguished Scholar in Residence, University of Delaware
Senior Fellow, Cato Institute
Former President, Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis
Kevin Hassett
Director, Economic Policy Studies, American Enterprise Institute (AEI)
Former Economist, Federal Reserve Board of Governors
Mario J. Crucini, Ph.D.
Research Associate, National Bureau of Economic Research (NBER)
Senior Fellow, Globalization and Monetary Policy Institute, Federal Reserve Bank of Dallas
Stephen J. Entin President and Executive Director Institute for Research on the Economics of Taxation Former Deputy Assistant Secretary for Economic Policy, Department of the Treasury
Kathleen B. Cooper, Ph.D.
Senior Fellow at the Tower Center for Political Studies, Southern Methodist University
Former Undersecretary for Economic Affairs, Commerce Department
Diana Furchtgott-Roth
Director, Center for Employment Policy
Senior Fellow, Hudson Institute Former Chief Economist, U.S. Department of Labor
Carl J. Dahlman
Senior Economist, RAND Corporation
Former Deputy Assistant Secretary, Department of Defense
Former Deputy Assistant Secretary, Department of Health and Human Services
David Malpass
President, Encima Global
Former Deputy Assistant Secretary, Treasury Department
Former Deputy Assistant Secretary, State Department
Thomas R. Saving
Jeff Montgomery Professor of Economics, Texas A&M University
Senior Fellow, National Center for Policy Analysis
Former Public Trustee, Social Security and Medicare Trust Funds
Timothy Perri
Professor of Economics Appalachian State University
Allan DeSerpa
Professor of Economics
Arizona State University
Nancy Roberts
Professor of Economics
Arizona State University
Clarence R. Deitsch
Professor of Economics and Labor Relations
Ball State University
Courtenay C. Stone
Professor of Economics
Ball State University
John Bethune, Ph. D.
Kennedy Chair of Business
Barton College
E. S. Savas, Ph.D. Presidential Professor School of Public Affairs Baruch College/CUNY
David VanHoose
Professor of Economics
Baylor University
Kenneth V. Greene
Distinguished Professor of Economics
Binghamton University
E. F. Stephenson
Professor of Economics
Chair, Department of Economics
Berry College
David E. Spencer
Professor of Economics
Brigham Young University
Michael L. Marlow
Professor of Economics
Cal Poly
Donald J. Oswald
Professor of Economics (Retired)
California State University, Bakersfield
Cathleen J Coolidge
Associate Professor of Economics
California State University, Chico
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Professor of Political Economy
Carnegie Mellon University
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Professor of Economics
Central Michigan University
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Associate Professor, Economics
Central Michigan University
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Professor of Economics Claremont Graduate University
Marc D. Weidenmier
William F. Podlich Associate Professor of Economics
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Claremont McKenna College
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Professor of Economics
Clemson University
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Charles W. Calomiris
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Cornell University
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Associate Professor of Economics
Duquesne University
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Professor and Chair of Economics
East Carolina University
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Professor of Economics
Eastern Illinois University
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Emory University
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Graduate Faculty–Economics
Florida Institute of Technology and Averett University
Henry G. Manne
Dean Emeritus George Mason University School of Law
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Distinguished Service Professor
Duquesne University
Former Staff Director, President’s Council of Economic Advisers
Douglas, C. Frechtling
Professor of Tourism Studies
George Washington University
Richard J. Sweeney
Professor of International Finance
McDonough School of Business
Georgetown University
W. Ken Farr
Chair & Professor of Economics, Department of Economics & Finance
Georgia College & State University
Christine Ries
Professor of Economics
Georgia Institute of Technology
Gerald Gay
Professor of Finance
Georgia State University
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Christopher R. Inama
Senior Adjunct Professor
Golden Gate University
Charles N. Steele, Ph.D.
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Hillsdale College
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Professor of Economics
Hillsdale College
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Associate Professor
Hillsdale College
Nikolai G. Wenzel, Ph.D.
Assistant Professor of Economics
Hillsdale College
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Hope College
John A. Tatom
Director of Research, Networks Financial Institute
Scott College of Business, Indiana State University
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Professor of Economics
Indiana Wesleyan University
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Davis College of Business
Walker/Wells Fargo Endowed Chair in Finance
Jacksonville University
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Assistant Professor of Economics
Kennesaw State University
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Lafayette College
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Professor of Economics
Lafayette College
James L. Huffman
Erskine Wood Sr. Professor of Law
Lewis & Clark Law School
Richard J Grant, Ph.D. Professor of Finance & Economics, College of Business, Lipscomb University
Don M. Chance
James C. Flores Endowed Chair of MBA Studies and Professor of Finance
Louisiana State University
W. Douglas McMillin
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Dean, School of Business
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Metropolitan State College of Denver
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Miami University (Oxford, OH)
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Professor of Economics
Michigan State University
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Missouri University of Science and Technology
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Micha Gisser
Professor Emeritus of Economics
University of New Mexico
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Professor, Department of Economics
New York University
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Professor of Economics
Nicholls State University
Barry K. Goodwin
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Professor of Economics
Oklahoma State University
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Professor of Economics
Ohio State University
Frank Wykoff
Eldon Smith Professor of Economics, Emeritus
Pomona College
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Professor and Chair, Department of Economics and Business
Randolph-Macon College
Fred E. Foldvary
Director, Civil Society Institute
Santa Clara University
David R. Henderson
Research Fellow, Hoover Institution
Stanford University
Dino Falaschetti
Gleed Endowed Chair, Seattle University
Associate Professor of Law and Economics, Florida State University
Norman Lefton, PhD Adjunct Associate Professor at the School of Business Southern Illinois University, Edwardsville
Lawrence J. Belcher, Ph.D.
Professor of Finance
Stetson University
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Professor of Economics
Suffolk University
Edgar K. Browning
Professor of Economics
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Frank Egan
Associate Professor of Economics
Trinity College
Dorla A. Evans, Ph.D.
Professor of Finance, Department of Accounting and Finance
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Professor of Economics
University of Alaska Anchorage
Lawrence Southwick
University Research Scholar, Finance and Managerial Economics Department
University at Buffalo
Leon Wegge
Professor of Economics Emeritus
University of California, Davis
Avanidhar Subrahmanyam
Goldyne and Irwin Hearsh Chair in Finance, Anderson School of Management
University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA)
Lee E. Ohanian
Professor of Economics
University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA)
Richard Roll
Professor of Finance, Anderson School of Management
University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA)
Professor Richard L. Smith
Philip L. Boyd Chair and Professor of Finance
University of California, Riverside
A. Edward Day, Ph.D. Associate Professor of Economics (retired) University of Central Florida
Steven N. Kaplan
Neubauer Family Professor of Entrepreneurship and Finance, Booth School of Business
University of Chicago
Eugen F. Fama
Robert R. McCormick Distinguished Service Professor of Finance, Booth School of Business
University of Chicago
Robert E. Lucas, Jr.
John Dewey Distinguished Service Professor of Economics, Department of Economics
University of Chicago
Barry W. Poulson
Professor of Economics (retired)
University of Colorado at Boulder
Jane H. Lillydahl
Professor Emerita, Department of Economics
University of Colorado at Boulder
Sanjai Bhagat
Professor of Finance
University of Colorado at Boulder
Michael Cosgrove Professor, University of Dallas Principle, Econoclast
Eleanor D. Craig
Associate Chair & Professor of Economics
University of Delaware
Richard Agnello
Associate Professor of Economics
University of Delaware
Stacie E. Beck
Associate Professor of Economics
University of Delaware
James B. O’Neill
Professor of Economics
Director, Center for Economic Education and Entrepreneurship
University of Delaware
C. Thomas Howard, Ph.D.
Professor, Reiman School of Finance
University of Denver
Ronald W. Ward
Emeritus Professor
University of Florida
Jeffrey H. Dorfman
Professor, Department of Agricultural and Applied Economics
The University of Georgia
James Moncur Professor Emeritus of Economics
University of Hawaii at Manoa
Paul R. Gregory
Cullen Professor of Economics
University of Houston
Roy J. Ruffin
M.D. Anderson Professor of Economics
University of Houston
R. Ashley Lyman
Professor Emeritus of Economics and Statistics
University of Idaho
Peter F. Colwell Professor Emeritus, Department of Finance
University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
William P. Albrecht Professor of Economics
University of Iowa
Michael R. Montgomery
Associate Professor of Economics
University of Maine
Jon Reisman
Associate Professor of Economics and Public Policy
University of Maine at Machias
Richard E. Just Distinguished University Professor University of Maryland – College Park
Ronald. L. Promboin, Ph.D. Adjunct Professor University of Maryland – University College Coldwell Daniel, III
Professor Emeritus
University of Memphis
Michael Connolly
Professor of Economics, University of Miami
Professor of Finance, Hunan University
Christopher Douglas, Ph.D.
Assistant Professor of Economics
University of Michigan-Flint
Mark J. Perry, Ph.D.
Visiting Scholar at the American Enterprise Institute (AEI)
Professor of Finance and Business Economics
University of Michigan-Flint
Stephen Parente, Ph.D.
Minnesota Insurance Industry Professor of Healthcare Finance
Director, Medical Industry Leadership Institute (MILI)
University of Minnesota
William F. Shughart II
F.A.P. Barnard Distinguished Professor of Economics
The University of Mississippi
Joseph Haslag
Professor and Kenneth Lay Chair in Economics
University of Missouri-Columbia
Susan Feigenbaum
Professor of Economics
University of Missouri at St. Louis
Arthur M. Diamond, Jr. Professor of Economics University of Nebraska at Omaha
Robert E. Chatfield Professor of Finance University of Nevada – Las Vegas (UNLV)
Evangelos Otto Simos
Professor of Economics, University of New Hampshire
Editor, Journal of Business Forecasting
Chief Economist, e-forecasting.com
Jim F. Couch
Professor of Economics
University of North Alabama
Alan C. Shapiro
Ivadelle and Theodore Johnson Professor of Banking and Finance Emeritus
Marshall School of Business
University of Southern California
Joel W. Hay, PhD Professor, Schaeffer Center for Health Policy and Economics University of Southern California
John G. Matsusaka
Professor of Finance and Business Economics
Charles F. Sexton Chair in American Enterprise
University of Southern California
Joseph Zoric
Associate Professor of Economics and MBA Director
Franciscan University of Steubenville
Roger Meiners
Professor of Economics
University of Texas at Arlington
Barry J. Seldon, Ph.D.
Professor of Economics and Political Economy
University of Texas at Dallas
Nathan J. Ashby
Assistant Professor of Economics
University of Texas at El Paso
Timothy P. Roth, PhD
A.B. Templeton Professor and Chairman, Department of Economics and Finance
University of Texas at El Paso
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John E. Murray Professor, Department of Economics University of Toledo
Author, Origins of American Health Insurance
Richard T. Selden
Carter Glass Professor of Economics Emeritus
The University of Virginia
David L. Kendall, Ph.D.
Professor of Economics and Finance
Chair, Department of Business and Economics
University of Virginia’s College at Wise
Luke M. Froeb
Associate Professor of Entrepreneurship and Free Enterprise
Vanderbilt University
Larry Van Horn
Associate Professor of Healthcare Management
Executive Director of Health Affairs, Owen Graduate School of Management
Vanderbilt University
Floyd H. Duncan, Ph.D. Roberts Professor of Free Enterprise Economics Chairman, Department of Economics and Business Virginia Military Institute
Robert J. Rossana
Professor of Economics
Wayne State University
Glenn MacDonald
Distinguished Professor of Economics and Strategy
Senior Associate Dean, Olin School of Business
Washington University in St. Louis
William N. Trumbull, Ph.D.
Professor of Economics West Virginia University
Robert D. Seeley
Associate Professor of Economics
Wilkes University
Dr. Jim Clark Associate Dean Associate Professor of Economics Wichita State University
John McArthur
Professor and Chair of Economics
Wofford College
Lawrence W. Lovik, Ph.D.
Senior Fellow
Alabama Policy Institute
Michael Ramlet
Coordinator – Operation Healthcare Choice
American Action Forum
Aparna Mathur
Resident Scholar
American Enterprise Institute
Philip I. Levy
Resident Scholar
American Enterprise Institute
Judy Shelton
Senior Fellow and Co-Director of the Sound Money Project
Atlas Economic Research Foundation
Warren Coats
Monetary Policy Advisory, Central Banks of Afghanistan, Iraq, Kazakhstan, Kenya, and Zimbabwe
Currency Director, Cayman Island Monetary Authority
Grace-Marie Turner
President
Galen Institute
Richard W. Rahn,
Chairman
Institute for Global Economic Growth
Merrill Matthews
Resident Scholar
Institute for Policy Innovation
John W. Diamond
Edward A. and Hermena Hancock Kelly Fellow in Public Finance
James A. Baker III Institute for Public Policy
Chief Executive Officer, Tax Policy Advisors, LLC
Mike Schuyler Senior Economist Institute for Research on the Economics of Taxation (IRET)
Paul Howard, Ph.D
Senior Scholar
Manhattan Institute
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Research Associate
National Bureau of Economic Research (NBER)
John C. Goodman
President, CEO and Kellye Wright Fellow
National Center for Policy Analysis
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Pacific Research Institute
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Director, Health Care Studies
Pacific Research Institute
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Partner, Airline Forecasts
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classicalprinciples.com
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