Organized labor, chamber of commerce makes clear where they stand on the health law

Feb 4 2014

Labor union leaders say the Obama administration's refusal to help with health law provisions they view as unsatisfactory is undermining their support for this year's midterm elections. Meanwhile, the U.S. Chamber of Commerce is looking at ways to fix, rather than repeal, the overhaul.  

The Washington Post: Labor Union Officials Say Obama Betrayed Them In Health-Care Rollout
Labor leaders who have spent months lobbying unsuccessfully for special protections under the Affordable Care Act warned this week that the White House's continued refusal to help is dampening union support for Democratic candidates in this year's midterm elections. ... Their complaints reflect a broad sense of disappointment among many labor leaders, who say the Affordable Care Act has subjected union health plans to new taxes and mandates while not allowing them to share in the subsidies that have gone to private insurance companies competing on the newly created exchanges (Mufson and Hamburger, 1/31).

Kaiser Health News: Joining GOP Trend, U.S. Chamber Of Commerce Urges Fix, Not Repeal, Of Obamacare
Some influential conservatives are now saying the health care law is too entrenched to repeal. Take the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, the powerful business lobbying group. When the Affordable Care Act Passed in 2010, the Chamber got behind a major business lawsuit to fight it at the U.S. Supreme Court. And in January, 2011 during his annual State of American Business address, Chamber President Tom Donohue said, "It's time, in my opinion, to go back to the drawing board...and thus we support legislation in the House to repeal it" (Whitney, 1/31).