Newt Gingrich Participates in Panel on Obamacare
March 18, 2011--Newt Gingrich, founder of the Center for Health Transformation, Dr. John Goodman, president and CEO of the National Center for Policy Analysis and James Capretta, a visiting fellow at the Heritage Foundation, held a panel discussion on "Obamacare, America's Side Effects and Survival Rate One Year Later."  Gingrich pointed out the unusual nature of the bill, which he said was passed in the face of public opinion.  He said the fact that the bill "was written to go to conference" accounts for some of its atypical aspects such as the absence of a severability clause.  Gingrich said he supports Rep. Steve King (R-IA)'s efforts to defund the law, and he expects the law will be repealed in 2013.  He also said he plans, in several weeks, to announce a proposal to block grant Medicaid.   
Dr. John C. Goodman of the National Center for Policy Analysis (center), is known as "the father of health savings accounts."  Goodman has identified "10 structural flaws in the Affordable Care Act (ACA).  Each is so potentially damaging, Congress will have to resort to major corrective action even if the critics of the ACA are not involved."  Goodman said the health care reform law makes promises "that we can't possibly keep."  James Capretta (right) said of the law, "The more that is learned, the worse it gets."  Capretta is co-author of the forthcoming book Why Obamacare is Wrong for America, due out next week.
After the event, Gingrich fielded more reporters' questions.

The Center for Health Transformation, which Gingrich founded in 2003, has produced three wall charts illustrating new layers of bureaucracy under the law.  The first ("a very modest 18 square foot chart") shows "159 New Federal Government Programs, Bureaucracies and Offices Created by the Obama Healthcare Law of 2010."  The second, 50 square feet, shows the many deadlines under the law.  The third, also 50 square feet, shows 1,968 grants of power to the federal government, specifically the Secretary of HHS.