Texas’ Ted Cruz started his presidential campaign a week ago at the Rev. Jerry Falwell’s Liberty University but the precise following day, issues surfaced related to his health insurance cover.
Obamacare should have been one of Cruz’s top focuses. His recent statements say Obamacare is both illegal and “a train wreck.” And, obviously, it puts a government civil servant in the position of a middle man between patients and physicians, he adds.
But when last week Cruz said he planned to sign his family up for health insurance coverage via Obamacare, the media burst out.
He was quoted by CNN as saying:
“We’ll be getting new health insurance, and we’ll presumably do it through my job in the Senate, and so we’ll be on the federal exchange like millions of others on the federal exchange. I believe we should follow the law, even laws I disagree with.”
Immediately, liberals accused Cruz of being a hypocrite. However, that is not exactly so. To cite ethics researcher Rush Limbaugh:
“There’s no hypocrisy in Cruz using Obamacare, just like there’s no hypocrisy in people opposing Social Security using it.”
Had Cruz followed up on his initial articulation, he may have been out of trouble. The real issues began when his assistants declared the senator had not, indeed, set his mind on what to do about his health coverage. In this way started a week-long debate.
A GOP campaigner who’s supporting previous Florida Gov. Jeb Bush noted:
“He had a superb announcement. But then his message got thrown off by this Obamacare distraction.”
The reason Cruz all of a sudden requires health coverage is that his family was secured by a policy covered by his wife’s employer, Goldman Sachs but now she chose to go on unpaid leave while her spouse is campaigning for presidentials.
What are Cruz’s options for purchasing a policy via the federal -run program ? His wife could require Goldman Sachs to proceed with their health coverage under the company’s unpaid leave programs. Yet, somehow that may look like something else.
Another option would be for her to seek continued coverage under the government COBRA law — however since she didn’t lose her occupation, but is leaving by choice, she may not qualify.
Also, Cruz could purchase a health policy from an insurance agency. Blue Cross of Texas, for instance, offers coverage for a family headed by a 44-year-old starting at $623 a month. Then again, that that accompanies a heavy $12,700 deductible.
Lastly, Cruz could decline to purchase a policy altogether and pay a fine to the Treasury on top of his taxes.
Image Source: CBS News